House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., on Thursday said the House will “repeal” a controversial provision in the government spending package that would allow senators to sue if the government investigates their phone records without notification.
The provision would allow a group of eight Republicans, whose phones were investigated without their knowledge by Special Counsel Jack Smith as part of his investigation into President Donald Trump’s alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, to file a lawsuit and potentially win hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages.
“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 bill states.
Johnson said in a press conference that he “was surprised and very frustrated” by the provision, adding that he spoke with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., about the issue.
“He’s a trustworthy, honest broker, and that’s why I was so surprised when we found out about that provision,” Johnson said of Thune.
“I was very angry about it. I was, and a lot of my members called me.”
He added, “I think he regretted the way it was done. And we had an honest conversation about that.”
“I didn’t ask him for any commitment at that time because I had a lot on my plate today.”
Johnson said, “I think that was way out of line. I don’t think that was a smart thing … and the House is going to reverse — we are going to repeal that, and I’m going to expect our colleagues in the Senate to do the same thing.”
Several House Republicans, including Johnson, criticized the provision’s inclusion in the spending bill, as did many Democrats in both the House and Senate.
“I personally agree that it should be removed,” Rep. Austin Scott, R-Ga., said during a hearing of the House Rules Committee on Tuesday.
“The problem is if we remove it, it has to go back to the Senate,” he added. “And then you’re right back to where you were 40 days ago.”
“What they did is wrong,” said Scott.
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