GOP senators want written assurance 'anti-weaponization fund' is dead before voting on ICE funding

Some Senate Republicans are wary of approving a funding package for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol without written assurances that the Department of Justice won't move forward with its "anti-weaponization fund," risking passage of a key legislative item for the administration.

The DOJ announced the $1.776 billion fund as part of a settlement to end President Donald Trump's lawsuit against the IRS over the leak of his tax returns by contractor Charles Littlejohn, who pleaded guilty. Bipartisan pushback and legal setbacks prompted acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to confirm that the agency would not move forward with the plan.

But his word isn't good enough for some Senate Republicans, including the outgoing Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., who told Punchbowl News that "[i]f we’ve got the acting AG saying it’s done, then let’s just stick a fork in it."

“We need to take action here. It’s creating headwinds that we don’t need,” he also said.

Several Republicans, including former GOP Leader Mitch McConnell, have criticized the fund over fears it could reward Trump allies.

The Senate plans to vote on a series of amendments to the funding package on Thursday, with GOP leaders hoping to shut them all down and swiftly pass the funding package.

The reconciliation bill does not require Democratic support and comes in the wake of a record-breaking shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security that saw Democrats object to immigration enforcement funding.

Ben Whedon is the Chief Political Correspondent for Just the News. Follow him on X.