Padilla, Senate Judiciary Democrats Denounce Trump’s Corrupt Attempted Money Grab for $230 Million From Justice Department for Previous Investigations

Senators highlight another attempt by Trump to weaponize his power for personal financial gain, as well as the inescapable conflicts of interest at DOJ in assessing these claims

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) joined Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and all Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats in condemning President Trump's demands that the Department of Justice hand him $230 million of taxpayer dollars in alleged damages from previous investigations.

In a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, the Senators blasted the claims as "yet another attempt by President Trump to weaponize his position of power for personal financial gain at the expense of American taxpayers." They highlighted serious conflicts of interest at the Trump Justice Department, noting that several of the officials who would review his settlement claims previously served as his personal lawyers.

"Setting aside the lack of merit in President Trump's claims, there is an inescapable conflict of interest in Trump Administration officials assessing these claims while serving at the President's pleasure. Moreover, the officials who have the authority to approve such a settlement pursuant to DOJ regulations - Deputy Attorney General (AG) Todd Blanche and Associate AG Stanley Woodward - have an even more acute conflict of interest because they defended President Trump and his co-defendant, respectively, in the classified documents case," wrote the Senators.

"The American people deserve to understand how political appointees of the President whose claims they are assessing, including an appointee who previously defended the President in one of the matters at issue, can ethically assess the merits of his claims," continued the Senators. "… As the American people grapple with the impacts of the Republican government shutdown, President Trump's attempt to exploit the Justice Department and profit from taxpayer dollars cannot be overlooked."

The Senators called out DOJ's attempt to dodge questions on whether Blanche or Woodward would recuse themselves, citing the Department's weak press statement invoking "career ethics officials" that DOJ terminated, instead handing their responsibilities to inexperienced political loyalists. They also criticized the firing of Joseph W. Tirrell, the Director of DOJ's Departmental Ethics Office, which offers senior political appointees like Bondi, Blanche, or Woodward advice on conflicts of interest, recusals, and financial disclosures. Jeffrey Ragsdale, the lead official in charge of investigating DOJ attorney misconduct, was also previously removed.

In addition to Padilla and Durbin, the letter is also signed by U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.).

Full text of the letter to Attorney General Bondi is available here and below:

Dear Attorney General Bondi:

President Trump has two administrative claims pending before the Department of Justice (DOJ), for which he is seeking approximately $230 million dollars of taxpayer money. In these claims, President Trump has 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 course of his investigation and prosecution for allegedly mishandling hundreds of pages of classified documents. This is yet another attempt by President Trump to weaponize his position of power for personal financial gain at the expense of American taxpayers.

Setting aside the lack of merit in President Trump's claims, there is an inescapable conflict of interest in Trump Administration officials assessing these claims while serving at the President's pleasure. Moreover, the officials who have the authority to approve such a settlement pursuant to DOJ regulations-Deputy Attorney General (AG) Todd Blanche and Associate AG Stanley Woodward-have an even more acute conflict of interest because they defended President Trump and his co-defendant, respectively, in the classified documents case.

When asked by ABC News whether Deputy AG Blanche or Associate AG Woodward would consider recusing themselves, a DOJ spokesperson provided this response: "In any circumstance, all officials at the Department of Justice follow the guidance of career ethics officials." However, as you know, the Trump Administration removed the senior career DOJ ethics officials who would provide this critical guidance and placed their duties in the hands of inexperienced political appointees who are beholden to you for their positions, an outrage we have repeatedly asked you to address to since February. Compounding this irresponsible move was the termination of Joseph W. Tirrell, the Director of DOJ's Departmental Ethics Office, which provides advice on conflicts of interest, financial disclosures, and recusals to senior political appointees at DOJ, such as Deputy AG Blanche, Associate AG Woodward, and yourself. You have failed to address Committee questions regarding this indefensible episode for over three months now. This followed the removal of another Department guardrail-the firing of the Director of the Office of Professional Responsibility, Jeffrey Ragsdale, who was the senior official of the office responsible for investigating DOJ attorney misconduct.

The American people deserve to understand how political appointees of the President whose claims they are assessing, including an appointee who previously defended the President in one of the matters at issue, can ethically assess the merits of his claims. To that end, we request that you provide the following by November 12, 2025:

1. A thorough description of the process by which President Trump's claims will be assessed, including a list of all the offices and officials involved.

2. A thorough description of the process by which all officials with any role in this matter will seek guidance on potential conflicts of interest and other ethical issues that may warrant recusal, including a list of all the offices and officials involved in providing such guidance.

3. Records relating to all communications between and among Department of Justice officials and White House officials concerning the submission and adjudication of these claims.

As the American people grapple with the impacts of the Republican government shutdown, President Trump's attempt to exploit the Justice Department and profit from taxpayer dollars cannot be overlooked. We look forward to your full and immediate compliance with this request.

Sincerely,

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