Former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen wants a piece of President Donald Trump’s new “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” a pot of nearly $1.8 billion established to compensate those who have been victims of politically motivated government actions.
Cohen told reporters he plans to apply for money from the fund as several Trump allies are looking to take advantage of the program, according to CBS News.
Cohen served time in prison for crimes related to his work for the president during the 2016 campaign. He told CBS News that he is preparing an application to the Justice Department’s new fund. He said he is “working through the process on my own and will submit the letter directly to the DOJ once completed.”
"Dear Weaponization Fund"
— Michael Cohen (@MichaelCohen212) May 22, 2026
After years of being smeared, surveilled, financially exposed, imprisoned, and silenced, I will file a claim asking whether America’s justice system became America’s political weapon.
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Cohen and his attorneys say his prosecution and imprisonment were part of a pattern of politically driven lawfare intended to punish him for his work with Trump and later for turning on him.
Here’s where it gets ironic. The Justice Department’s records say Cohen pleaded guilty in 2018 to eight criminal counts, including tax evasion, campaign finance violations tied to hush money payments, and making false statements to a bank.
Cohen was sentenced to 36 months in prison for what prosecutors described as “brazen violations of the election laws” when he arranged the hush money payments during the 2016 campaign. But now, he says the legal system was used against him, which means he’s entitled to compensation from the weaponization funds.
The Anti-Weaponization Fund was established as the result of a settlement in which Trump agreed to drop his $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service over the leaking of his tax returns. The money will come from the federal Judgment Fund, a Treasury Department account used to pay legal settlements.
My appearance this evening on @CNN with Jake Tapper as we discuss the Weaponization Fund and other matters. Make sure to check it out and let me know
— Michael Cohen (@MichaelCohen212) May 22, 2026
your thoughts! pic.twitter.com/AVhBifXNVI
Claims will be processed until December 15, 2028. A five-member commission appointed by the attorney general will decide who receives financial compensation and formal apologies to the victims who were targeted for political or personal reasons.
The fund has sparked a wave of backlash and controversy. Applications are already pouring in even though the fund is not operational yet and no commissioners have been appointed. Democrats slammed the program as an unconstitutional slush fund for Trump supporters. The Justice Department insist there are no partisan requirements and that anyone who believes they were targeted unfairly can apply.