Overview
- Democratic Sens. Martin Heinrich and Mark Kelly filed a bill to remove the new statute, which currently has 24 Democratic co-sponsors and no Republican backers, meaning it would need 60 votes to advance.
- The contested provision in the shutdown-ending funding law lets senators sue for roughly $500,000 or more if their phone data are accessed without notice and requires the Justice Department to alert Congress when a senator’s records are sought.
- House Speaker Mike Johnson scheduled a standalone repeal vote, which leaders say is likely to pass the chamber swiftly.
- Senate Majority Leader John Thune, identified by reporters as the architect of the language, defended it as a deterrent to perceived DOJ overreach and was noncommittal on changing or dropping it.
- Republican senators showed division, with Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley open to repeal and Markwayne Mullin rejecting retroactive application, while Chuck Schumer said Thune drove the deal and voiced support for scrapping it.