Floor SpeechBipartisan2026-06-01

ANTI-WEAPONIZATION FUND

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Context

On 2026-06-01, Senator Richard J. Durbin (D-IL) delivered a floor speech titled "ANTI-WEAPONIZATION FUND" in the Senate.

Full Text

ANTI-WEAPONIZATION FUND

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 92 (Monday, June 1, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 92 (Monday, June 1, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S2463-S2464] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] ANTI-WEAPONIZATION FUND Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, on a separate topic, today is June 1, the arbitrary deadline President Trump imposed on the congressional Republicans to send their partisan funding bill to his desk for signature. So why aren't the Republican colleagues headed to the White House today for a flashy bill signing ceremony to fund more abuses by the ICE Agency? I will tell you. Because 2 weeks ago, Senate Republicans left town after an internal revolt over the President's so-called Anti- Weaponization Fund. Nearly $1.8 billion--$1.8 billion. That is even more than the ballroom--$1.8 billion for the slush fund for the President's cronies and allies. Well, who would be eligible for any part of the $1.8 billion fund? People like Brandon Fellows. This may be a new name to you, but we are becoming more familiar with him. He was pardoned by President Trump, a full and unconditional Presidential pardon, for being one of the January 6 insurrectionists who was convicted and sentenced on felony and misdemeanor charges for climbing an exterior wall of the Capitol, entering the building through a broken window. Well, time has passed. Has he shown any remorse since he was convicted of that crime? No. He still believes President Trump's Big Lie about the 2020 election and the conspiracy theory that January 6-- which he is on video participating in--was a setup, entrapment. I remember that day very well. I was seated here. Vice President Pence was presiding over the Senate. We were officially counting the ballots as to who [[Page S2464]] actually won the election in 2020. All of a sudden, a little after 2, those doors opened and policemen came in--I assumed they were policemen, they had on plain clothes--and went up to the Vice President on the podium, whispered in his ear, and pulled him off the podium quickly through that door. We sat here wondering what was going on. There was a big demonstration going on outside. Nobody knew what was happening. They were making noise, but that is not unusual in the Capitol. At that point, a member of the Capitol Police, one of the officers who protected you in the Gallery and me today when we entered the building, came and stood before us and said: Stay where you are. Stay in your seats. This is going to be a safe room. This mob that came up from the White House is going to be stopped. Stay where you are. So we all sat here not quite sure what to do next. Ten minutes later, the same policeman came up and said: New orders. Leave immediately. Evacuate through this door, and we will follow you. So we headed out, all of the Senators off the floor and the staff as well, to an adjoining building. What happened next? The mob then broke down the doors and came into the Capitol, came into the Senate Chamber and the House Chamber, rifled through our desks, aped for pictures in front of one another, and basically threatened people who were here that they had to leave. That is what actually happened. Now, we know that happened because it was on a videotape. We saw it. America saw it. Every minute of it followed carefully. And yet we actually have people today who deny it ever happened. If you are a student of history, you know that in the Soviet empire, they did that regularly. If history became inconvenient, they rewrote it, wrote another book, condemned people for saying the old way was the right way. That is what is happening here. Well, this fellow Brandon Fellows was one of the people who broke into the Capitol through a broken window. He still believes that Trump won the 2020 election. He still believes that conspiracy theory about January 6, despite--it actually never happened is what he says, which he is on video participating in. He likes to spend his free time dressing up as an ICE agent and encouraging others to do the same to terrorize immigrants. How much is Mr. Fellows seeking from the anti-weaponization $2 billion slush fund of the President? He thinks his inconvenience that he encountered is worth $30 million Federal tax dollars--$30 million. And we can expect droves of other January 6 insurrectionists to also seek these cash rewards. Even those who continue to threaten our communities by committing more crimes, many of them of the January 6 mob that mobbed this Chamber, are back in jail for committing another crime after President Trump's pardon, ranging from conspiracy to murder, to child sex abuse, and exploitation. Let me say it in a different way: While American families are struggling to afford gas for their cars, put food on their tables, pay their utility bills--thanks to Trump's tariffs and war of choice in Iran--the President wants to hand lofty payouts to his political buddies and the criminals who attacked our democracy at his request. It reeks of corruption. I will also note, as part of the settlement, the IRS is permanently barred from auditing past tax returns of President Trump, his family, and related companies. Get that? Ever play Monopoly? Remember that get- out-of-jail card you had hung onto? President Trump wanted a get-out- of-jail card from the Federal Government, his government, that he would never be prosecuted for tax fraud--never. It included his family, his colleagues, his business buddies, and friends. That was part of this deal in creating this slush fund. Is this America? Is this a Monopoly game? And if it is, it is embarrassing--permanently barred from auditing past tax returns of Donald Trump, his family, and related companies. Taken altogether, this is deeply disturbing. Senate Democrats will continue to fight this unprecedented and unacceptable $1.8 billion slush fund for January 6 insurrectionists and Trump loyalists and will work to halt the flow of taxpayer dollars to Trump's massive deportation campaign while standing ready to have a serious bipartisan negotiation about the need for reforms of Trump's immigration system. If this partisan reconciliation bill ever sees the light of day, we will put Republicans on record by votes on this floor as to whether or not they accept this as a legitimate exercise of government function. Will Republican colleagues stand by the Constitution and the laws of our country, or will they join the President in this folly? I hope time will tell that they will join us in a bipartisan effort to stop the slush fund. I yield the floor. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mrs. Britt). The Senator from Kansas. ____________________

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ANTI-WEAPONIZATION FUND Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 92 (Monday, June 1, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 92 (Monday, June 1, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S2463-S2464] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] ANTI-WEAPONIZATION FUND Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, on a separate topic, today is June 1, the arbitrary deadline President Trump imposed on the congressional Republicans to send their partisan funding bill to his desk for signature. So why aren't the Republican colleagues headed to the White House today for a flashy bill signing ceremony to fund more abuses by the ICE Agency? I will tell you. Because 2 weeks ago, Senate Republicans left town after an internal revolt over the President's so-called Anti- Weaponization Fund. Nearly $1.8 billion--$1.8 billion. That is even more than the ballroom--$1.8 billion for the slush fund for the President's cronies and allies. Well, who would be eligible for any part of the $1.8 billion fund? People like Brandon Fellows. This may be a new name to you, but we are becoming more familiar with him. He was pardoned by President Trump, a full and unconditional Presidential pardon, for being one of the January 6 insurrectionists who was convicted and sentenced on felony and misdemeanor charges for climbing an exterior wall of the Capitol, entering the building through a broken window. Well, time has passed. Has he shown any remorse since he was convicted of that crime? No. He still believes President Trump's Big Lie about the 2020 election and the conspiracy theory that January 6-- which he is on video participating in--was a setup, entrapment. I remember that day very well. I was seated here. Vice President Pence was presiding over the Senate. We were officially counting the ballots as to who [[Page S2464]] actually won the election in 2020. All of a sudden, a little after 2, those doors opened and policemen came in--I assumed they were policemen, they had on plain clothes--and went up to the Vice President on the podium, whispered in his ear, and pulled him off the podium quickly through that door. We sat here wondering what was going on. There was a big demonstration going on outside. Nobody knew what was happening. They were making noise, but that is not unusual in the Capitol. At that point, a member of the Capitol Police, one of the officers who protected you in the Gallery and me today when we entered the building, came and stood before us and said: Stay where you are. Stay in your seats. This is going to be a safe room. This mob that came up from the White House is going to be stopped. Stay where you are. So we all sat here not quite sure what to do next. Ten minutes later, the same policeman came up and said: New orders. Leave immediately. Evacuate through this door, and we will follow you. So we headed out, all of the Senators off the floor and the staff as well, to an adjoining building. What happened next? The mob then broke down the doors and came into the Capitol, came into the Senate Chamber and the House Chamber, rifled through our desks, aped for pictures in front of one another, and basically threatened people who were here that they had to leave. That is what actually happened. Now, we know that happened because it was on a videotape. We saw it. America saw it. Every minute of it followed carefully. And yet we actually have people today who deny it ever happened. If you are a student of history, you know that in the Soviet empire, they did that regularly. If history became inconvenient, they rewrote it, wrote another book, condemned people for saying the old way was the right way. That is what is happening here. Well, this fellow Brandon Fellows was one of the people who broke into the Capitol through a broken window. He still believes that Trump won the 2020 election. He still believes that conspiracy theory about January 6, despite--it actually never happened is what he says, which he is on video participating in. He likes to spend his free time dressing up as an ICE agent and encouraging others to do the same to terrorize immigrants. How much is Mr. Fellows seeking from the anti-weaponization $2 billion slush fund of the President? He thinks his inconvenience that he encountered is worth $30 million Federal tax dollars--$30 million. And we can expect droves of other January 6 insurrectionists to also seek these cash rewards. Even those who continue to threaten our communities by committing more crimes, many of them of the January 6 mob that mobbed this Chamber, are back in jail for committing another crime after President Trump's pardon, ranging from conspiracy to murder, to child sex abuse, and exploitation. Let me say it in a different way: While American families are struggling to afford gas for their cars, put food on their tables, pay their utility bills--thanks to Trump's tariffs and war of choice in Iran--the President wants to hand lofty payouts to his political buddies and the criminals who attacked our democracy at his request. It reeks of corruption. I will also note, as part of the settlement, the IRS is permanently barred from auditing past tax returns of President Trump, his family, and related companies. Get that? Ever play Monopoly? Remember that get- out-of-jail card you had hung onto? President Trump wanted a get-out- of-jail card from the Federal Government, his government, that he would never be prosecuted for tax fraud--never. It included his family, his colleagues, his business buddies, and friends. That was part of this deal in creating this slush fund. Is this America? Is this a Monopoly game? And if it is, it is embarrassing--permanently barred from auditing past tax returns of Donald Trump, his family, and related companies. Taken altogether, this is deeply disturbing. Senate Democrats will continue to fight this unprecedented and unacceptable $1.8 billion slush fund for January 6 insurrectionists and Trump loyalists and will work to halt the flow of taxpayer dollars to Trump's massive deportation campaign while standing ready to have a serious bipartisan negotiation about the need for reforms of Trump's immigration system. If this partisan reconciliation bill ever sees the light of day, we will put Republicans on record by votes on this floor as to whether or not they accept this as a legitimate exercise of government function. Will Republican colleagues stand by the Constitution and the laws of our country, or will they join the President in this folly? I hope time will tell that they will join us in a bipartisan effort to stop the slush fund. I yield the floor. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mrs. Britt). The Senator from Kansas. ____________________