Courtney, Hayes spent thousands of campaign dollars on security
WASHINGTON — U.S. Reps. Joe Courtney and Jahana Hayes both spent thousands of campaign dollars on security in the wake of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and increasing numbers of threats against members of Congress.
Sixteen days after the Capitol invasion, Hayes, D-5, paid $3,627 in campaign funds to a company that installs security systems, a review of Federal Election Commission filings shows. She followed up with an additional smaller payment to the company in February.
“The temperature in this space has been rising for some time, as evidenced by the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol,” said Barbara Ellis, Hayes’ campaign manager. “For these reasons, it was time to invest in modest security precautions.”
Likewise, Courtney, D-2, spent $3,245 on security systems in February and March, his campaign finance filings show. A spokesman for Courtney declined to comment on the investments.
No other members of the Connecticut congressional delegation spent campaign funds on security during the first quarter of 2021, according to their FEC filings. But as protective fencing enveloped the U.S. Capitol and National Guardsmen patrolled the grounds, many other members of Congress did spend campaign funds on additional security in their districts — often doling out much larger sums than Hayes and Courtney.
U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, a newly-elected Democrat from the Georgia special election in January, spent $132,000 on security from January to April, FEC filings show.
U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., one of eight Republican senators who voted against certifying the 2020 presidential election results, spent $50,000 on security in the same quarter. U.S. Rep. John Katko, R-N.Y., one of 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump, spent $20,000. Rep. Alexandria OcasioCortez, D-N.Y., spent $46,000.
These members paid for bodyguards, security consultants, event security and alarm systems, among other things. The Federal Election Commission permits members to spend campaign funds on expenses that result from their position as a federal officeholder, including residential security systems and locks.
Acting Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittman testified before Congress last week that threats against members of Congress have increased nearly 65 percent in the first quarter of 2021 compared with the same period in 2020. Pittman said such threats have more than doubled from 2017 to 2020. They now track thousands of threats against the 535 members of Congress a year, up from hundreds a few years ago.
U.S. Capitol Police provide security to top congressional leaders and members facing significant threats.
Members of Congress can also use their official funds to pay for some security purposes and those sums are not disclosed publicly. In the wake of Jan. 6, when supporters of President Donald Trump invaded the U.S. Capitol, forcing lawmakers into lock down and causing multiple deaths, members were notified they could spend an additional $65,000 on security through their official funds, Politico reported.
But there are rules about what they can put money from their office towards — home security systems and security details for campaign travel are excluded, for example. The burden of those expenses are shifted onto campaign funds and necessitate more fundraising for candidates with greater security needs.
Democrats and Republicans are in talks to offer more flexibility for how members of Congress can spend their funds on security, as part of broad discussions about Capitol security improvements after Jan. 6. U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-3, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., have been working to craft a supplemental spending appropriation to address security at the Capitol.
A bipartisan group of 32 House members wrote to Pelosi in January asking for a longer list of permissible security expenses, for support to protect their personal information and for regular security briefings.
“Members now regularly face threats in Washington D.C. and in their districts,” they wrote. “Today, with the expansion of the web and social media sites, so much information about Members is accessible in the public sphere, making them easier targets, including home addresses, photos, personal details about Members’ families, and real-time information on Member attendance at events.”
In Connecticut, the State Elections Enforcement Commission has not received any requests for an advisory opinion on spending campaign funds on security for candidates running for statewide office or the legislature, said Josh Foley, a staff attorney for the Commission. SEEC has not issued a ruling on whether this is an allowable expense.
In March, the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance ruled that candidates in that state could spend on items like body armor, bullet proof vests, gas masks, and pepper spray for themselves or their staff.
“In light of recent events in our nation’s capital, it is reasonable for candidates and their staff members to be concerned about their personal security while at work in the State House or other governmental building, or in the performance of their official duties elsewhere,” the Office explained.