A new U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) fund aimed at compensating victims of lawfare and political persecution could potentially include Jan. 6, 2021, suspects, according to Vice President J.D. Vance.
“This is about compensating Americans for the warfare that we saw under the last administration and by the way, anybody can apply for it,” Vance said on May 19. “Republicans can apply for it. Democrats can apply for it.”
The judgment fund of $1.776 billion is a perpetual appropriation.
Although the settlement was for a case filed in the Southern District of Florida federal court over an alleged leak of President Donald Trump’s tax returns, he will receive a formal apology but no monetary payment or damages.
“Is a dollar of this money going to the Trump administration? No,” Vance said. “Is a dollar of this money going to Donald Trump personally? No. Is a dollar of this money going to Donald Trump's family? No. The people that would get the money are people, some of whom have been prosecuted completely disproportionate to any crime they've ever committed.”
When a reporter asked about January 6 defendants, Vance said disbursements would be made on a case-by-case basis.
January 6 defendants refer to the individuals who were charged by the federal government for their alleged involvement in the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
“If we think that somebody, whatever they were accused of, if we think that somebody was unfairly prosecuted and deserves just compensation, then that's what this fund is going to exist to provide,” Vance said. “It's just going to correct a wrong.”
He mentioned former Colorado county clerk Tina Peters, who is facing 10 years in prison for allegedly allowing a 2021 data breach of her county's voting systems. She is 70 years old.
“This is a woman who at worst, if you believe everything that the prosecutors said about her, committed misdemeanor trespassing and somebody threw the book at her, this innocent grandmother was going to spend 10 years in prison completely disproportionate to any misdemeanor trespassing that I've ever seen,” Vance added.
Beyond the Anti-Weaponization Fund, Vance disclosed a DOJ investigation into Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) for alleged immigration fraud related to her past marriages.
"It certainly seems like something fishy is there," he said.