Dear sirs:

Congress has a constitutional responsibility to protect taxpayer dollars and oversee federal spending. Under what authority has the executive branch created the so-called Anti-Weaponization Fund? On what basis does it claim the right to unilaterally turn a lawsuit settlement into a massive, discretionary taxpayer-funded payout pool without explicit congressional approval? I know of none.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has made it clear that Jan. 6 insurrectionists, including those who injured law enforcement officers and pooped on the floor in the Capitol, are eligible to apply for these funds. This is insanity.

I urge you to support the Bipartisan Transparency for American Taxpayers Act. This legislation would prohibit federal funds from being used to pay any claims submitted to the Department of Justice’s newly announced Anti-Weaponization Fund. No one wants to see members of the Proud Boys and people who ransacked congressional offices (including that of Sen. Risch) getting a big payday.

Does any one of you not have the guts to speak out against this unlawful and shameful gambit? Or are you so cowed by Trump that you’ve lost not only your voice but your mettle?

Betty Richardson

Boise