Trump administration plans to create a $1.7 billion fund to indemnify its allies investigated by Biden's DOJ

The Trump administration is planning a $1.7 billion fund to compensate allies investigated during the Biden administration. According to the New York Times, which spoke with three sources inside the White House, the plan has not been finalized or approved by the White House.

The proposal would include covering legal fees for political allies, people under investigation in cases linked to Trump and potentially some of those charged in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. However, it is still unclear where the fund's money would come from.

"The idea of establishing a government fund to pay Mr. Trump’s political allies has gained traction internally as the Justice Department and White House try to resolve a $10 billion lawsuit Mr. Trump filed in January against the Internal Revenue Service. The judge overseeing that case is considering throwing out Mr. Trump’s suit because it is ridden with perceived conflicts of interest and the potential for self-dealing," the NYT said.

"People in Mr. Trump's orbit have for months discussed a compensation fund for his allies who incurred significant legal fees during the various investigations that ensnared Mr. Trump and his aides. It could extend to the nearly 1,600 people charged in connection with the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021," the news outlet added.

In addition, the fund would include $230 million earmarked to address two administrative lawsuits Trump filed against the Department of Justice stemming from previous investigations into him.

Once rumors began circulating, Democrats began to criticize the plan. For example, Senator Elizabeth Warren summed up the proposal as "mammoth corruption."

"A $1.7 billion slush fund for Trump's hand-picked stooges to hand money to January 6th insurrectionists and his political allies. Here's the President's priority as Americans sell their plasma to afford gas and groceries," the Massachusetts senator added.