# The Daily Blast: Trump’s $10 Billion IRS Shakedown Takes Darker Turn, Unnerving Experts

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-dsr-network-747607/the-daily-blast-trump-s-10-billion-irs-shakedown-takes-darker-turn-unnerving-experts
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-dsr-network-747607/the-daily-blast-trump-s-10-billion-irs-shakedown-takes-darker-turn-unnerving-experts.md
Podcast: [The DSR Network](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-dsr-network-747607)
Published: 2026-05-19T09:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://traffic.megaphone.fm/TRGM6531049201.mp3?updated=1779146662
Audio file: https://traffic.megaphone.fm/TRGM6531049201.mp3?updated=1779146662
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-dsr-network-747607/episodes/the-daily-blast-trump-s-10-billion-irs-shakedown-takes-darker-turn-unnerving-experts
Duration seconds: 1124

## Resource

Donald Trump has reached a “settlement” with his Justice Department in a $10 billion lawsuit he brought against the IRS. Under it, DOJ will create a new $1.8 billion fund, controlled by Trump, that will dole out payments to allies who have supposedly been victimized by government “weaponization.” This could include the January 6 rioters. This has shocked legal observers, who called it everything from “horrible” to a “slush fund,” with others describing it as corruption that might be historically unprecedented. What happened here? Is there any recourse? Do Republicans really want to defend this, given that Trump’s economic numbers just cratered again in a brutal New York Times poll? We talked to legal expert Harry Litman, who writes for The New Republic and hosts the Talking Feds podcast. He explains why this is likely illegal but almost impossible to stop; why it’s so damaging to our system more broadly; and how Democrats can ensure that the GOP pays a major price for it this fall. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-dsr-network-747607/episodes/the-daily-blast-trump-s-10-billion-irs-shakedown-takes-darker-turn-unnerving-experts/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-dsr-network-747607/the-daily-blast-trump-s-10-billion-irs-shakedown-takes-darker-turn-unnerving-experts.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.