Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) criticized Donald Trump for demanding that taxpayers pay him millions in compensation for criminal investigations.
The New York Times reported on Tuesday that Trump submitted complaints against the DOJ through an administrative claims process, seeking $230 million in damages for its criminal investigations of him dating back to before his first term in the White House and afterward.
During the Biden administration, Special Counsel Jack Smith brought two cases against Trump related to his alleged mishandling of classified documents and his attempts to overturn the results of the 2024 presidential election after his loss. The Trump Justice Department dropped the cases after he won the 2024 presidential election.
Trump also filed requests for damages in connection with the DOJ’s investigation of interference in the 2016 presidential election by Russia and potential connections to Trump’s campaign that year.
Speaking with CNN on Wednesday, Tillis called the move “bad optics.”
“It’s terrible optics, particularly right now,” he said. “We’re talking about a quarter of a billion dollars transferring, maybe to the President when we’re in a shutdown posture.”
“I think right now, it’s really bad timing,” Tillis added.
Other Republicans told Raju they did not know enough about Trump demanding $230 million from taxpayers to comment on the issue.
