Published by TrenBuzz.com | May 21, 2026 | BREAKING
Key Points at a Glance – Michael Cohen’s Anti-Weaponization Fund Claim
- Michael Cohen — Trump’s former personal “fixer” turned sworn enemy — says he is applying to Trump’s own DOJ anti-weaponization fund.
- He told CBS News: “I am working through the process on my own and will submit the letter directly to the DOJ once completed.”
- Cohen is on his third draft of the letter — applying without any help or outside legal counsel.
- The $1.776 billion Anti-Weaponization Fund was announced Tuesday — part of the IRS lawsuit settlement.
- The first known applicant is Michael Caputo — a Trump ally seeking $2.7 million for alleged targeting during the Russia investigation.
- The DOJ confirmed: “There are no partisan requirements to file a claim.” Anyone alleging government weaponization may apply.
- CNN’s Jake Tapper asked Cohen: “Do you really think Trump will want you to have money?” Cohen replied: “Probably not.”
- Cohen served nearly 3 years in prison — for campaign finance violations, tax evasion, and other charges tied to his Trump work.
- A Treasury official leaked Cohen’s financial records — a crime for which John C. Fry pleaded guilty in 2019.
- Republican senators are seeking clarity on the fund’s eligibility rules — worried Jan. 6 cop-assaulters may get payouts.
Donald Trump created a $1.776 billion fund to compensate people he says were weaponized against by the government. And the first person outside his MAGA circle to apply for it is the man Trump has spent five years calling a liar, a rat, and a coward.
Michael Cohen, a Trump lawyer-turned-critic who served prison time due to his work for the president, is planning to apply for money from the Justice Department’s new “anti-weaponization fund.” “I am working through the process on my own and will submit the letter directly to the DOJ once completed,” Cohen told CBS News in a text message.
Cohen’s Argument — And Why He Actually Has a Case
In a portion of his draft obtained by CBS News, Cohen wrote: “If the weaponization fund truly exists to support individuals destroyed by politically motivated law enforcement tactics, selective prosecution, government leaks, abuses of power and intentional destruction of reputation, then there is perhaps no clearer example than what happened to me.”
John C. Fry pleaded guilty in 2019 to downloading Cohen’s personal financial information from the Treasury Department’s FINCEN system and leaking it to lawyer Michael Avenatti, who in turn gave it to a reporter. Cohen cited this leak as his specific grounds for claiming weaponization.
The irony is almost textbook: the man Trump called “weak” and “not a very smart person” is now using Trump’s own legal victory to claim the government violated his rights — and under the fund’s stated rules, he may not be wrong.
How the Fund Works — And Why “No Partisan Requirements” Is Huge
The Justice Department said in a statement Monday that “there are no partisan requirements to file a claim,” and decisions on who will get relief will be determined by a panel of five people appointed by the attorney general.
Cohen said: “My understanding is that there actually is no formal application that exists. You do it via letter to the Department of Justice, and I have drafted that letter — I’m on my third rendition of it. Nobody told me or called me up to say, ‘Hey, you should do this.’ I saw it on television. I saw Michael Caputo put it in via a letter.”
The First Applicants — A MAGA Queue — With One Outlier
Less than a week after the DOJ announced the $1.776 billion Anti-Weaponization Fund, Jan. 6 defendants and allies of President Trump lined up to seek their share. Michael Caputo, a longtime Trump ally, filed the first known claim seeking $2.7 million, writing that “the machinery of government was clearly politically weaponized against my family.”
In private discussions, some Trump advisers have pushed for clear eligibility limits, over fears that rioters convicted of assaulting police officers on January 6 will secure payouts.
Then came Michael Cohen — the man the entire Republican Party spent four years labeling a liar — and the queue got very awkward, very fast.
The CNN Moment — “Probably Not”
“Do you really think Donald Trump is going to want you to have any money?” CNN’s Jake Tapper asked Cohen. “Probably not,” Cohen said, with characteristic dry candor.
That two-word answer captured the entire absurdity of this situation better than any legal brief could.
Republican Senators Alarmed — Fund May Unravel Reconciliation Bill
The Senate is leaving Washington without taking a previously planned vote on an ICE and Border Patrol funding bill after a DOJ briefing with Republican lawmakers on the new anti-weaponization fund complicated consideration of the legislation.
The $1.776 billion fund was established as part of an agreement to settle Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS over the leak of his tax returns. Under the agreement, Trump, his sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, and the Trump Organization will receive a formal apology, but no direct monetary damages.
Trump built the fund for his allies. The rules say it’s for everyone. And one Thursday morning in May 2026, the man who knows Donald Trump best — and despises him most — picked up a pen and decided to find out which one is actually true.
Disclaimer: This article is for general informational and news reporting purposes only. All quotes, fund details, and legal facts are sourced from CBS News, NBC News, ABC News, CNN, Raw Story, and Time Magazine as of May 21, 2026. Michael Cohen’s claim has not been submitted or adjudicated as of publication. No individual mentioned has been found eligible or ineligible for the Anti-Weaponization Fund. TrenBuzz.com makes no independent legal assessments. Readers are encouraged to follow credible news and official DOJ sources for real-time updates.