Washington DC - A federal judge recently sided with the Department of Justice (DOJ) in a lawsuit over President Donald Trump's failed Anti-Weaponization Fund, but warned that it should remain dead as they claim.

According to CBS News, District Judge Richard Leon denied a request on Wednesday to block the fund.

He sided with the DOJ, which noted that Attorney General Todd Blanche had testified before Congress last week to say that they are "not moving forward" with it, now making the suit moot.

During a hearing, Judge Leon said he is "not persuaded a live controversy remains," but described the case as "highly unusual."

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An attorney for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics – a watchdog group that filed the suit – argued the fund's charter remains "in full force and effect" as Blanche declined to rescind the fund in writing when he testified to the House Appropriations Committee.

They also argued that Blanche's statement is not a legally valid dismissal of the policy, and pointed out that President Trump has not publicly said the fund is dead.

When pressed on why the department would not rescind the order creating the fund, an attorney for the DOJ responded, "I don't know."

At one point, Judge Leon issued a stern warning to the DOJ: "Don't play possum with this court."

The fund was created by the Justice Department as part of an extraordinary settlement of Trump's civil lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service over the leak of his tax returns by a former government contractor.

The administration says it is intended to compensate people who suffered from government "weaponization" and "lawfare" – Trump's terms for what he says was the politically motivated targeting of conservatives and his supporters.

But opponents say the fund – dubbed by many as a "slush fund" – has no clear legal basis, little public oversight, and could be used to reward loyalists, including January 6 Capital rioters.