California Governor Gavin Newsom wants the state to impose a 100 percent tax on any resident who receives monetary relief through the Justice Department’s $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund.”
Newsom, a Democrat who has fervently pushed back against President Donald Trump’s policies, told reporters Wednesday he was thinking of ideas to combat the $1.776 billion fund that would allow anyone who believes they have been wrongly prosecuted to request taxpayer money. Some critics have labeled it a “slush fund” for Trump allies.
“Anyone from California that receives any of those funds, we want to tax 100 percent of those proceeds and that’s an action the state of California can take,” Newsom said during a press conference.
Newsom indicated the new tax would be implemented either through the state legislature or as a ballot measure, saying it would need “your support.”
It’s the latest effort by Trump’s opponents to push back against the unusual multi-billion-dollar fund that emerged as a settlement from a lawsuit between Trump, his adult sons, and his business and the IRS. The DOJ has sought to justify the fund by insisting the Trumps would not be eligible for a portion of it and that it’s open to anyone.
But lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have denounced the so-called “slush fund,” believing it would allow people such as the January 6, 2021, rioters to seek taxpayer compensation despite having once attacked the Capitol.
“People who assault cops and overthrow democracy don’t deserve a taxpayer-funded payday,” Newsom later said in an X post, referring to the pot of money as a “slush fund.”
Newsom’s suggested tax is just the latest effort from lawmakers to oppose the fund. In New York, Democratic state assemblyman Alex Bores suggested imposing a 100 percent tax on any New Yorker who collects money from the fund.
New Jersey state Senator Andrew Zwicker told Policito he was working to draft a bill to set up a 100 percent tax on the fund, calling the idea a “brilliant counter move.”
Even Republican lawmakers have voiced opposition to Trump’s “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” which the DOJ announced without informing members of Congress beforehand.
Republican Rep. Mike Flood told constituents this week that he “never approved” the fund and that no January 6 rioter should be entitled to monetary relief. GOP Senator Mitch McConnell called it “utterly stupid” and “morally wrong.” Outgoing Republican Senator Thom Tillis referred to the fund as “stupid on stilts.”
Newsom revealed his 100 percent tax idea while signing a new bill that will restrict law enforcement from interfering with elections, such as obtaining voter rolls without a warrant.
Trump has sought to take more control over elections by directing agencies to create voter rolls, pressuring Congress to implement federal voter ID laws, restricting mail-in ballot voting, forcing states to comply with his demands and more.
