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Lindsey Graham Holds Up Government Funding Because He Wants To Sue DOJ For Millions

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WASHINGTON – Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) continued to single-handedly stall passage of a bipartisan bill to fund the government Friday morning, demanding he have a right to sue the federal government for accessing his phone records.

Graham objected to a provision in the spending package repealing the ability of U.S. senators whose records were collected in a Jan. 6 investigation to claim millions of dollars in damages. Graham, whose phone metadata was collected by the Department of Justice, helped pass the law last year. The House of Representatives voted unanimously to repeal it this month and attached the provision to the government funding proposal.

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In an angry speech on the Senate floor, Graham addressed House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and his conference in the House.

“You could have called me about the $500,000,” Graham said, referring to the amount of damages senators can get per phone record accessed. “I would be glad to work with you. You jammed me, Speaker Johnson. I won’t forget this.”

Under existing law, Graham is eligible to sue the Justice Department for each violation, which lawmakers have estimated could be as much as several million dollars if the subpoenas covered records for multiple phones on multiple days.

Senators wrote the provision after learning last year that former special counsel Jack Smith had obtained several of their phone records during his investigation of President Donald Trump’s attempt to overthrow the 2020 election. Smith told lawmakers he sought the records because Trump and his co-conspirators called members of Congress during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot and pushed them to delay the certification of his loss to Joe Biden.

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House Republicans were disgusted by the provision, calling it self-serving and unethical. To try to win them over, Graham proposed expanding the pool of people eligible for damages to include House lawmakers, whose phone records were also taken, as well as members of the general public targeted by Smith’s investigation.

Graham signaled on Friday he is willing to back down and allow a vote on the spending package if he receives assurances that the Senate will hold a vote on changes to the payout provision, as well as a separate bill cracking down on immigration “sanctuary cities” like Minneapolis.

“I just want a vote,” Graham said.

Large swaths of the government are poised to shut down at midnight Friday if Congress doesn’t approve the funding deal, which was negotiated by Senate Democrats and Trump. Senators were hoping to pass the bill on Thursday until Graham objected. Any one senator can deny unanimous consent and block a quick vote on the floor.

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A temporary funding lapse for parts of the federal government won’t be avoided even if the Senate passes the bill on Friday, since it still requires a vote by the House to get to Trump’s desk. The effects of the shutdown won’t be felt as widely over the weekend since many federal workers don’t go back to work until Monday.

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said he understood Graham’s frustration with the Smith investigation, but said Republicans would be rightfully blamed for shutting down the government if they don’t move the funding bill.

“There are various ways that you can go after Jack Smith, if that’s really what you’re wanting to do, if they did these sorts of surveillance or phone tapping,” Tillis said. “Whether or not we should have a $500,000 reward for a member that got targeted, I don’t want that. I would like maybe a dollar award to send a message, but come on, guys.”