Lindsey Graham halts repeal of controversial Senate payout

U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham blocked an attempt to repeal a controversial provision that uniquely benefits him and other senators investigated after the Jan. 6 Capitol riots — potentially by millions — even after the U.S. House voted unanimously to scrap it.

The measure, quietly inserted by senators into last week’s funding bill that ended the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, opens the door for eight senators — including Graham — to sue the Justice Department for $500,000 per violation if investigators accessed their phone records without notifying them.

Graham is among the lawmakers whose phone records were sought as part of special counsel Jack Smith's investigation into the Jan. 6 Capitol attack, making Graham one of the few senators who could personally benefit from the new