The Justice Department gives Trump an unprecedented settlement

The Justice Department's unprecedented settlement with Donald Trump over his lawsuit against the IRS—where Trump sued the government he oversees, resulting in a $1.776 billion payout—has raised alarms about the erosion of checks and balances in American democracy. Andrew Weissman, a former lead prosecutor in the Mueller investigation and author of *Liar's Kingdom*, argues this deal is not a true legal settlement but a self-dealing agreement that effectively grants Trump and his associates civil immunity from future tax investigations. The fund created by the settlement, to be administered by a five-member commission appointed by Trump’s acting attorney general, could pay pardoned January 6th defendants, raising fears of a politicized 'slush fund' that rewards criminal conduct. Weissman warns this undermines the rule of law, especially as the DOJ bypassed judicial oversight and the acting AG, a former personal lawyer to Trump, had a continuing duty of loyalty to the president. He contrasts this with democracies like Brazil, where leaders have been criminally prosecuted for election lies and barred from office, and calls for a U.S. law that holds politicians accountable for intentional falsehoods—particularly about elections—through due process.