‘What they did is wrong’: House Republicans slam Senator payout provision in funding bill

House Republicans Criticize GOP Senator Payday in Shutdown-End Bill, But Move Forward

WASHINGTON — Conservative House Republicans criticized a multimillion-dollar payout to eight GOP senators tucked into legislation aimed at ending the government shutdown on Tuesday night. Despite their objections, they said they had little choice but to advance the bill.

During a House Rules Committee meeting to set up Wednesday’s vote, which could end the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, both Democrats and Republicans repeatedly denounced the provision that would benefit senators.

Rep. Austin Scott (R-Ga.) read portions of the provision aloud, expressing disbelief that senators would include language granting themselves such a direct financial benefit.

“I personally agree this should be removed,” Scott said. “The problem is, if we remove it, it has to go back to the Senate.”

Scott added that the provision’s last-minute inclusion without committee review in either chamber made the decision difficult.

Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) called the provision “self-serving, self-dealing kind of stuff” and said it “needs to get fixed as soon as possible.”

However, Roy noted that removing the language now would likely prolong the shutdown because the Senate would need to approve the bill again before it could reach the president. The Senate had already left Washington on Monday after passing the bill following a 41-day impasse over health care.

The contested provision, reportedly added at the direction of Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), would allow senators to sue the government if their office phone records were obtained by the Justice Department without notification. It would not apply to members of the House.

The measure, retroactive to 2022, appears designed to benefit Republican senators whose phone records were accessed in 2023 during the Justice Department’s investigation into President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) confirmed last month that Senate phone records were obtained in connection with the investigation.

The legislative text states: “Any Senator whose Senate data, or the Senate data of whose Senate office, has been acquired, subpoenaed, searched, accessed, or disclosed in violation of this section may bring a civil action against the United States if the violation was committed by an officer, employee, or agent of the United States or of any Federal department or agency.”

The eight senators potentially eligible to file claims include Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.).

Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) noted that the bill provides $500,000 in damages for each violation, meaning total costs could be much higher if the DOJ accessed some senators’ data multiple times. She proposed an amendment to remove the provision, but it is expected to be rejected by Republicans.

“The bottom line is, if we amend this bill with anything at all, we risk extending the shutdown,” Scott said.

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, called the payout provision “blatantly corrupt” and a misuse of public resources.

Raskin said senators could be eligible for at least $1 million in damages individually, since they were the subjects of subpoenas and judicial non-disclosure orders.

“The senators are saying they each want a million dollars because Donald Trump got them involved in the attempted political coup and violent insurrection on Jan. 6, and a grand jury wanted to see their phone records,” Raskin told HuffPost.

Raskin added the provision could violate the Constitution’s equal protection clause, giving U.S. senators legal privileges in the criminal justice system that other Americans do not have.

Attorneys for Jack Smith, the special counsel who led the investigation into President Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election, said the actions were legally authorized to examine Trump and his allies’ conduct surrounding Jan. 6, 2021. Several GOP senators, including Ron Johnson and Mike Lee, were in frequent contact with Trump and supported his efforts to challenge the election results.

Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.), a senior appropriator, acknowledged that the provision was inappropriate but suggested amending the legislation was not worth delaying the government’s reopening.

“I was surprised to see it in the bill. I was unaware of it,” Cole said. “Do I think it needs to be in a funding bill? Not particularly. But do I think getting the government open is important? Yes, I do.”