# Democrats Attack Trump Fund as GOP Struggles With Immigration Bill  
**Published:** 2026-06-03T00:49:34.000Z  
**Source:** [Nebraska Examiner](https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/06/02/repub/dems-spotlight-anti-weaponization-fund-as-us-senate-gop-struggles-to-pass-immigration-bill/)  
**AI-generated:** yes (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001)  
**Canonical:** https://lincolne.news/article/democrats-attack-trump-fund-as-gop-struggles-with-immigration-bill

WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats and Capitol police officers on Tuesday mounted an aggressive attack on the Trump administration's proposed $1.776 billion "anti-weaponization" fund, even as Republican lawmakers scrambled to resolve internal divisions over a stalled $72 billion immigration funding package. The Democratic opposition came as [reported by the Nebraska Examiner](https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/06/02/repub/dems-spotlight-anti-weaponization-fund-as-us-senate-gop-struggles-to-pass-immigration-bill/), with liberal advocacy groups Public Citizen and Common Cause organizing a Capitol Hill press conference.

"The notion that we are going to come up with a fund to provide some sort of a relief for the Capitol Hill cop beaters is outrageous to me," said Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee. Former U.S. Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn, standing behind Durbin, was among those suing the Trump administration over the fund's creation.

The administration announced the anti-weaponization fund in May as part of a settlement with Trump over the leak of his tax returns, but the initiative has faced [fierce and rare backlash from Senate Republicans](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/trump-administration-appears-back-18-billion-anti-weaponization-fund-r-rcna347884) who threatened to join Democrats in blocking it. Multiple federal judges have also temporarily halted the fund pending legal challenges. Dunn suggested the fund amounted to Trump placing "his mob on a retainer," while Durbin vowed Democrats would force recorded votes against the "slush fund."

The fund's future became even more uncertain Monday when the Trump administration signaled it may abandon the initiative entirely, citing pressure from GOP lawmakers. In May, Trump had pardoned nearly all Capitol riot defendants and commuted the sentences of more than a dozen involved in planning the attack.

Republicans' internal divisions over the fund have stalled progress on the immigration bill, which Trump said he wanted passed by June 1. Senate Majority Leader John Thune and other GOP leaders have made clear the anti-weaponization fund must be resolved before the immigration measure can advance, with at least [about half the Republican conference prepared to vote with Democrats to restrict or kill the fund](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/trump-administration-appears-back-18-billion-anti-weaponization-fund-r-rcna347884).

"The only thing that's going to solve this problem, to get immigration funded and law enforced, is for the president to do away with the weaponization fund," said Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, the Judiciary Committee chair overseeing the Department of Justice.

## Sources

- [Nebraska Examiner](https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/06/02/repub/dems-spotlight-anti-weaponization-fund-as-us-senate-gop-struggles-to-pass-immigration-bill/)
- [NBC News reporting on Republican backlash against the anti-weaponization fund](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/trump-administration-appears-back-18-billion-anti-weaponization-fund-r-rcna347884)

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This article was generated by AI (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001) based on source material from Nebraska Examiner, enriched with 2 web searches. The original source is available at https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/06/02/repub/dems-spotlight-anti-weaponization-fund-as-us-senate-gop-struggles-to-pass-immigration-bill/.