DOJ Pardon Ally Aims for Seat on $1.7B Trump Victims Fund Board

Mike Howell, a Republican lawyer and close ally of Ed Martin, the DOJ pardon attorney, has asked Acting AG Todd Blanche to appoint him to one of five seats on the new anti-weaponization fund’s board. The fund, created as part of a $10 billion settlement with Trump over the IRS leak, will distribute more than $1.7 billion to people claiming government “weaponization” through 2028. If chosen, Howell would oversee payments; he leads the Oversight Project and is a Heritage Foundation fellow. The bid is the first publicly known attempt to join the commission; DOJ did not comment. A separate former Trump adviser, Michael Caputo, has also sought restitution from the fund.