Congress is best chance to stop Trump 'lawfare' fund, attorneys say

Key points

• President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media as he arrives at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, May 20, 2026. Evelyn Hockstein | Reuters Congress will have the best chance in the courts to block a controversial $1.8 billion "lawfare" compensation fund set up by the Department of Justice to settle a lawsuit by President Donald Trump against the Internal Revenue Service, former federal prosecutors told CNBC on Wednesday.
• Those attorneys, both now in private practice, said members of Congress have good legal grounds to challenge the use of taxpayer money for the fund, which purportedly will pay people who were unfairly targeted by the DOJ under the Biden administration.
• Two days after Trump and Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the fund's creation, skeptics from across the political spectrum emerged to figure out next steps to challenge its legality.
• Challenges could wind their way through the court system...