Durbin, Schiff To Introduce Bill To Block Trump From Getting $230 Million Taxpayer Payout From DOJ

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, joined U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA) in announcing that they will be introducing theNo Torts for Trump Act,legislationto prohibit sitting presidents from seeking taxpayer-funded payouts under theFederal Tort Claims Act(FTCA). This follows recent reporting that President Trump ispressingthe Justice Department to pay him roughly $230 million as a settlement for proper investigations he faced under the Biden administration and during his first term in office.
The introduction of theNo Torts for Trump Actcomes a month after DurbinledSenate Judiciary Democrats in denouncing President Trump’s demands that the DOJ pay him $230 million of taxpayer dollars in alleged damages from previous proper investigations.
“After installing his former personal lawyers at the top of the Justice Department, President Trump is tryingtosqueeze $230 million in taxpayer dollars out of the Department as ‘compensation’ for federal investigations into his alleged wrongdoing. This is yet another blatant attempt by President Trump to weaponize his position of power for personal financial gain,”Durbin said.“I’m introducing theNo Torts for Trump Actto prevent the President from siphoning hundreds of millions of dollars from taxpayers to personally enrich himself.”
“The core feature of Donald Trump’s presidency is corruption. And the president’s attempt to have the Justice Department — run by his own former criminal defense lawyers — pay him hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars for some imagined claim is just the latest in a long line of self-enrichment schemes. My bill would ensure that taxpayers are not ripped off for the president’s benefit,”said Schiff.
Last month, President Trump submitted complaints through an administrative claims process under the FTCA, which Congress enacted to authorize plaintiffs to obtain compensation from the United States for the torts of federal employees. In these claims, President Trump alleged his rights were violated during the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) investigation into his 2016 campaign’s ties to Russia and during the investigation and prosecution for allegedly mishandling hundreds of pages of classified documents.
President Trump’s claims pose substantial and concerningethicalchallenges due to the unprecedented nature of his demands. Any settlement claims to DOJ for more than $4 million must be approved by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche or Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward – both of whom have personally represented President Trump or his associates and currently serve in their DOJ roles at his pleasure.
TheNo Torts for Trump Actwould amend the FTCA to exclude the president from being eligible to seek relief under the law regardless of when the tort took place or claim was filed.
In addition to Durbin and Schiff, this bill is co-sponsored by U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Jack Reed (D-RI), and Jacky Rosen (D-NV).
The legislation is supported by Democracy Defenders Action, Project on Government Oversight (POGO), Protect Democracy, and Public Citizen.
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