The US Justice Department quietly added a provision on Tuesday that permanently bars the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from auditing Donald Trump's past tax returns. This addendum amends a widely criticized agreement that creates a secretive and loosely controlled $1.776bn fund designed to compensate allies of the former president.
Details of the Addendum
The addendum, signed by Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, states that the government is "forever barred" and "precluded" from examining the tax returns of Donald Trump, his family, his company, and any related entities. The agreement applies to all tax filings made before the date of the agreement. It was posted on the Justice Department's website on Tuesday morning, just one day after the department announced the creation of the compensation fund.
Mounting Scrutiny
The inclusion of this provision only adds to the growing scrutiny surrounding the broader agreement, which was reached on Tuesday. The arrangement was announced after Trump said he would drop a $10bn lawsuit against the IRS and other specious claims against the government in exchange for the creation of the fund. According to the New York Times, IRS officials had recommended fighting Trump's lawsuit, but the agency decided to settle anyway, raising further questions about potential improper interference.
Fund Management and Oversight
The fund will be managed by five individuals, all of whom can be fired at will by the president. It is not required to publicly disclose who receives money or the reasons for such awards. The Tuesday amendment was released shortly after Blanche testified in a Senate hearing where Democrats harshly criticized the agreement. Senator Chris van Hollen of Maryland described it as "an outrageous, unprecedented slush fund."
When pressed by Democrats on whether individuals convicted of assaulting police officers during the January 6 Capitol riot could receive money from the fund, Blanche stated that there were no limitations on who could file a claim. He also said that neither Trump personally nor his sons would receive compensation, though the agreement's text does not explicitly prevent them from filing a claim.
Transparency Concerns
The text of the agreement released on Monday night says the fund will produce quarterly confidential reports to the attorney general detailing amounts paid out and recipients. However, despite this confidentiality provision, Blanche testified on Tuesday that there would be accountability. "There's accountability that the commission has, a quarterly report that has to come to the attorney general, which will certainly be public," he said. "There's a process that you all will get information, and there's a FOIA process. So I very much anticipate that the claims that are awarded, the basis and the amount will for sure be made public along the way."
