Trump’s IRS Suit May End With a $1.7 Billion Compensation Fund

Victims of so-called government weaponization could seek money from the proposed fund.

A banner featuring President Donald Trump on the facade of the US Department of Justice headquarters.

Photographer: Drew Angerer/AFP/Getty Images

US officials have discussed creating a $1.7 billion federal fund to pay victims of so-called government weaponization to resolve President Donald Trump’s lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service. Million-dollar payouts the administration has already made to some of his supporters provide a roadmap for where the money might go.

The settlement talks have taken place ahead of a key deadline next week in Trump’s $10 billion suit seeking to hold the IRS liable for the 2019 leak of his tax information, according to people familiar with the discussions. One of the people, who asked not to be identified as the conversations were private, said officials are considering the fund option as well as possibly dropping audits into the president, his family and his businesses. ABC News earlier reported the fund possibility.