New Haven Joins Lawsuit To Block Trump Administration's $1.7B 'Slush Fund:' Mayor

From the City of New Haven, Office of Mayor Justin Elicker.

NEW HAVEN, CT — Mayor Justin Elicker announced the City of New Haven has joined a lawsuit with a coalition of organizations and individuals harmed by the Trump-Vance administration’s $1.776 billion so-called “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” which the U.S. Department of Justice created through a private agreement with President Trump and his family following the president’s own lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service.

This fund allows the Trump-Vance administration to distribute taxpayer money with minimal oversight, transparency, or judicial involvement while creating a politically discriminatory process that excludes many of the plaintiffs—people alleging abuses by Republican officials or administrations.

In addition to the City of New Haven, other harmed plaintiffs include former career Assistant U.S. Attorney and January 6th prosecutor Andrew Floyd, Professor John Caravello, and the National Abortion Federation.

Additionally, Common Cause joins as a plaintiff because of their mission to safeguard taxpayer funds, and they are unable to do that if taxpayer funds are going toward a secret slush fund.

The case is Andrew Floyd et al v. U.S. Department of Justice et al and all plaintiffs are represented by Democracy Forward.

Taxpayer money into an "unregulated $1.7B political slush fund" to pay off (Trump) political cronies and criminals."

“The residents of New Haven work too hard to see their federal tax dollars go into some unregulated $1.7 billion political slush fund that President Trump and his administration can use to pay off his political cronies and criminals,” Elicker said. “This so-called ‘Anti-Weaponization Fund’ is just the opposite: it’s the latest example of how President Trump is weaponizing every part of our federal government to advance his own personal interests and the personal interests of those who politically support him. The residents of New Haven want their hard-earned tax dollars to be used to fund critical public safety initiatives and infrastructure projects – like the ones the Trump administration is attempting to illegally terminate. As we have in the past, New Haven will continue to fight for our residents and stand up for the rule of law.”

In January 2026, President Trump, members of his family, and the Trump Organization sued the IRS and the Treasury Department over the disclosure of his tax return information. Rather than litigating the case, the department settled it by establishing a massive government-funded compensation program designed to benefit people wholly unrelated to the Trump v. IRS litigation.

Many of these individuals, who claim they were victims of alleged “lawfare” or “weaponization” by Democrats or Democratic administrations, are now emboldened to continue unlawful activity, including the illegal harassment of abortion clinics and violence at polling locations around the country.

The lawsuit argues that the creation of the fund violates the U.S. Constitution, exceeds executive authority, unlawfully bypasses Congress’s exclusive authority over federal spending and appropriations, and violates the Administrative Procedure Act. The complaint also challenges the administration’s use of the federal Judgment Fund to finance the program. The lawsuit raises concerns about the secrecy surrounding the fund’s operations, including provisions that allow claims and payments to remain confidential and limit public accountability for how nearly $2 billion in taxpayer money is distributed.

As noted in the complaint, the City of New Haven and other cities and local governments have been targeted by the Trump administration through civil litigation and weaponized federal funding terminations to punish opposition to the Trump administration’s agenda. This includes a sustained campaign by the Trump administration to use the levers of the federal government to punish what it views as “sanctuary” jurisdictions as evidenced by the Trump Administration’s recent lawsuit against the City of New Haven and Mayor Elicker challenging the validity of New Haven’s Welcoming City Executive Order (United States v. Connecticut, et al.). As part of the same campaign, the Trump administration has also sought to withhold federal funds from New Haven, in an effort that a federal court determined was likely unlawful on multiple grounds (San Francisco et al. v. Trump et al.).

The plaintiffs are asking the court to block implementation of the fund and prevent the administration from transferring or distributing any funds while the litigation proceeds. As plaintiffs argue, the only way to end the disparate and illegal effects of the Anti-Weaponization Fund is by dissolving it and returning the money to the Judgment Fund, a fund that can only be used to settle imminent litigation of viable lawsuits, not meritless claims by the president and his family.

“First, hundreds of people attacked the foundation of an ordered society by trying to stop the results of a free and fair election—committing serious assaults on law enforcement and other crimes as they did so. Then, this administration pardoned them—removing the accountability that had been hard earned by victims, witnesses, law enforcement, and prosecutors and imposed by impartial jurors and judges. Now they are asking taxpayers to illegally reward them for their crimes,” said former career Assistant U.S. Attorney and January 6th prosecutor Andrew Floyd.

“President Trump wants to take your hard-earned tax dollars and hand it over to criminals, cronies, and insurrectionists who assaulted police officers in his name,” said Virginia Kase Solomón, Common Cause President and CEO. “It’s unconscionable, and more importantly, it’s illegal. We’re suing to protect hardworking Americans and ensure public money goes towards making our lives more affordable, not paying out the president’s political allies.”

“In yet another attempt to test the limits of our fragile political ecosystem, the Trump administration has facilitated the creation of a fund made from the people’s money in a discriminatory manner where only their political allies are compensated. Unconstitutional on its face, it serves a nefarious purpose: namely, to further divide a working class who, regardless of political affiliation, have legitimate grievances against a government that has failed to provide its people with what is necessary to survive and flourish,” said Professor John Caravello.

“Abortion providers and clinic staff already face escalating threats, harassment, stalking, and violence simply for providing essential healthcare. The Trump-Vance administration has made that danger worse by pardoning anti-abortion extremists, walking away from meaningful FACE Act enforcement, and now attempting to create a taxpayer-funded slush fund that could reward the very people who target abortion providers and patients, including NAF members. This isn't just an abuse of government power. It's a direct threat to abortion providers, patients, and communities across the country. NAF is joining this lawsuit because abortion providers and their patients deserve protection, not a federal scheme that emboldens extremists and shields them from accountability,” said Brittany Fonteno, President and CEO of the National Abortion Federation.

“This latest attempt by the Trump-Vance administration to make grift great again is profoundly unlawful and will not withstand judicial scrutiny,” said Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. “The administration cannot use taxpayer dollars to create a secretive, politically driven compensation scheme that rewards allies and punishes perceived opponents. The Constitution does not allow the executive branch to build its own corrupt billion-dollar slush fund, shield it from accountability, and distribute public money based on politics and ideology. This lawsuit is about protecting the rule of law and preventing a dangerous abuse of government power, and we will keep showing up in court to hold this administration accountable.”

The full complaint for Andrew Floyd et al v. U.S. Department of Justice et al. can be read here.

To date, the City of New Haven has joined six lawsuits against the Trump administration and joined 24 other amicus briefs. Prior to this lawsuit, New Haven’s most recent legal action was joining an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to support access to the abortion drug mifepristone and opposing an appeals court ruling that would ban mail delivery and pharmacy availability of the drug nationwide.