Republicans in Congress just voted to reverse a landmark FCC privacy rule that opens the door for ISPs to sell customer data. Lawmakers provided no credible reason for this being in the interest of Americans, except for vague platitudes about “consumer choice” and “free markets,” as if consumers at the mercy of their local internet monopoly are craving to have their web history quietly sold to marketers and any other third party willing to pay.
The only people who seem to want this are the people who are going to make lots of money from it. (Hint: they work for companies like Comcast, Verizon, and AT&T.) Incidentally, these people and their companies routinely give lots of money to members of Congress.
So here is a list of the lawmakers who voted to betray you, and how much money they received from the telecom industry in their most recent election cycle.
Note on the data below: donations include contributions from corporations in the telecom industry and employees of those corporations (individual and non-individual contributions). The largest donors tend to be corporations which contributed funds to the candidate and / or the candidate’s leadership organization (PAC). All figures only reflect donations tallied for the candidate’s most recent election — many have received total sums much larger than the figure reflected over the course of their career in Congress. Figures are from federal election data compiled by the National Institute on Money in State Politics (www.followthemoney.org).
Additionally, it’s important to note that the communications industry is one of the largest lobbying groups in US history; internet providers and the telephone companies before them are notorious for spreading wealth across the aisle. Regardless, one party seems more responsive to the industry’s demands.
US Senate
| MEMBER | PARTY | STATE | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| MEMBER | PARTY | STATE | TOTAL |
| Alexander, Lamar | Republican | TN | $86,400 |
| Barrasso, John | Republican | WY | $63,000 |
| Blunt, Roy | Republican | MO | $185,550 |
| Boozman, John | Republican | AR | $56,450 |
| Burr, Richard | Republican | NC | $58,500 |
| Capito, Shelley | Republican | WV | $24,675 |
| Cassidy, Bill | Republican | LA | $34,909 |
| Cochran, Thad | Republican | MS | $123,750 |
| Collins, Susan | Republican | ME | $57,550 |
| Corker, Bob | Republican | TN | $43,600 |
| Cornyn, John | Republican | TX | $148,800 |
| Cotton, Tom | Republican | AR | $70,025 |
| Crapo, Mike | Republican | ID | $11,000 |
| Cruz, Ted | Republican | TX | $40,840 |
| Daines, Steve | Republican | MT | $38,700 |
| Enzi, Mike | Republican | WY | $45,100 |
| Ernst, Joni | Republican | IA | $28,200 |
| Fischer, Debra | Republican | NE | $21,850 |
| Flake, Jeff | Republican | AZ | $27,955 |
| Gardner, Cory | Republican | CO | $95,023 |
| Graham, Lindsey | Republican | SC | $74,522 |
| Grassley, Chuck | Republican | IA | $135,125 |
| Hatch, Orrin | Republican | UT | $106,750 |
| Heller, Dean | Republican | NV | $78,950 |
| Hoeven, John | Republican | ND | $25,800 |
| Inhofe, Jim | Republican | OK | $38,000 |
| Johnson, Ron | Republican | WI | $123,652 |
| Kennedy, John | Republican | LA | $1,000 |
| Lankford, James | Republican | OK | $21,000 |
| Lee, Mike | Republican | UT | $60,913 |
| McCain, John | Republican | AZ | $84,125 |
| McConnell, Mitch | Republican | KY | $251,110 |
| Moran, Jerry | Republican | KS | $130,950 |
| Murkowski, Lisa | Republican | AK | $66,250 |
| Perdue, David | Republican | GA | $37,000 |
| Portman, Rob | Republican | OH | $89,350 |
| Risch, Jim | Republican | ID | $27,000 |
| Roberts, Pat | Republican | KS | $100,200 |
| Rounds, Mike | Republican | SD | $40,166 |
| Rubio, Marco | Republican | FL | $75,535 |
| Sasse, Benjamin | Republican | NE | $31,800 |
| Scott, Tim | Republican | SC | $60,200 |
| Shelby, Richard | Republican | AL | $27,000 |
| Strange, Luther | Republican | AL | $0* |
| Sullivan, Daniel | Republican | AK | $10,550 |
| Thune, John | Republican | SD | $215,000 |
| Tillis, Thom | Republican | NC | $41,220 |
| Toomey, Patrick | Republican | PA | $143,456 |
| Wicker, Roger | Republican | MS | $151,800 |
| Young, Todd | Republican | IN | $28,670 |
*Senator Strange was appointed to Congress in February 2017 to fill Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ seat.
US House of Representatives
| MEMBER | PARTY | STATE | DISTRICT | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MEMBER | PARTY | STATE | DISTRICT | TOTAL |
| Abraham, Ralph | Republican | LA | 5th | $5,750 |
| Aderholt, Robert | Republican | AL | 4th | $26,500 |
| Allen, Rick | Republican | GA | 12th | $9,500 |
| Amodei, Mark | Republican | NV | 2nd | $22,000 |
| Arrington, Jodey | Republican | TX | 19th | $8,450 |
| Babin, Brian | Republican | TX | 36th | $8,000 |
| Bacon, Donald | Republican | NE | 2nd | $7,000 |
| Banks, Jim | Republican | IN | 3rd | $12,100 |
| Barletta, Lou | Republican | PA | 11th | $14,700 |
| Barr, Andy | Republican | KY | 6th | $28,400 |
| Barton, Joe | Republican | TX | 6th | $39,750 |
| Bergman, Jack | Republican | MI | 1st | $21,200 |
| Biggs, Andy | Republican | AZ | 5th | $5,000 |
| Bilirakis, Gus | Republican | FL | 12th | $55,000 |
| Bishop, Mike | Republican | MI | 8th | $40,500 |
| Bishop, Rob | Republican | UT | 1st | $5,500 |
| Black, Diane | Republican | TN | 6th | $27,750 |
| Blackburn, Marsha | Republican | TN | 7th | $84,000 |
| Blum, Rodney | Republican | IA | 1st | $5,500 |
| Bost, Mike | Republican | IL | 12th | $29,750 |
| Brady, Kevin | Republican | TX | 8th | $20,000 |
| Brat, David | Republican | VA | 7th | $6,000 |
| Bridenstine, Jim | Republican | OK | 1st | $1,000 |
| Brooks, Susan | Republican | IN | 5th | $44,300 |
| Buchanan, Vern | Republican | FL | 16th | $18,900 |
| Buck, Ken | Republican | CO | 4th | $15,750 |
| Bucshon, Larry | Republican | IN | 8th | $33,000 |
| Budd, Theodore | Republican | NC | 13th | $10,000 |
| Burgess, Michael | Republican | TX | 26th | $39,500 |
| Byrne, Bradley | Republican | AL | 1st | $17,500 |
| Calvert, Ken | Republican | CA | 42nd | $12,000 |
| Carter, Buddy | Republican | GA | 1st | $12,250 |
| Carter, John | Republican | TX | 31st | $22,500 |
| Chabot, Steven | Republican | OH | 1st | $25,500 |
| Chaffetz, Jason | Republican | UT | 3rd | $38,100 |
| Cheney, Liz | Republican | WY | 1st | $18,400 |
| Cole, Tom | Republican | OK | 4th | $14,000 |
| Collins, Doug | Republican | GA | 9th | $42,850 |
| Collins, Chris | Republican | NY | 27th | $57,500 |
| Comer, James | Republican | KY | 1st | $14,750 |
| Comstock, Barbara | Republican | VA | 10th | $56,457 |
| Conaway, Mike | Republican | TX | 11th | $18,500 |
| Cook, Paul | Republican | CA | 8th | $15,000 |
| Costello, Ryan | Republican | PA | 6th | $38,750 |
| Cramer, Kevin | Republican | ND | 1st | $71,750 |
| Crawford, Eric | Republican | AR | 1st | $9,000 |
| Culberson, John | Republican | TX | 7th | $8,000 |
| Curbelo, Carlos | Republican | FL | 26th | $45,700 |
| Davis, Rodney | Republican | IL | 13th | $49,000 |
| Denham, Jeffrey | Republican | CA | 10th | $47,000 |
| Dent, Charles | Republican | PA | 15th | $25,200 |
| DeSantis, Ron | Republican | FL | 6th | $21,634 |
| DesJarlais, Scott | Republican | TN | 4th | $3,000 |
| Diaz-Balart, Mario | Republican | FL | 25th | $26,500 |
| Donovan, Daniel | Republican | NY | 11th | $16,000 |
| Duncan, Jeff | Republican | SC | 3rd | $12,610 |
| Dunn, Neal | Republican | FL | 2nd | $13,750 |
| Emmer, Thomas | Republican | MN | 6th | $18,500 |
| Farenthold, Blake | Republican | TX | 27th | $19,000 |
| Ferguson, Anderson | Republican | GA | 3rd | $7,000 |
| Fitzpatrick, Brian** | Republican | PA | 8th | $32,600 |
| Fleischmann, Chuck | Republican | TN | 3rd | $18,000 |
| Flores, Bill | Republican | TX | 17th | $40,500 |
| Fortenberry, Jeff | Republican | NE | 1st | $3,500 |
| Foxx, Virginia | Republican | NC | 5th | $13,250 |
| Franks, Trent | Republican | AZ | 8th | $16,500 |
| Frelinghuysen, Rodney | Republican | NJ | 11th | $55,456 |
| Gaetz, Matt | Republican | FL | 1st | $7,000 |
| Gallagher, Mike | Republican | WI | 8th | $16,019 |
| Garrett, Tom* | Republican | VA | 5th | $3,250 |
| Gibbs, Robert | Republican | OH | 7th | $8,000 |
| Gohmert, Louie | Republican | TX | 1st | $8,000 |
| Goodlatte, Bob | Republican | VA | 6th | $73,950 |
| Gosar, Paul | Republican | AZ | 4th | $2,000 |
| Gowdy, Harold | Republican | SC | 4th | $15,750 |
| Granger, Kay | Republican | TX | 12th | $15,000 |
| Graves, John | Republican | GA | 14th | $34,000 |
| Graves, Sam | Republican | MO | 6th | $31,000 |
| Griffith, Tim | Republican | AR | 2nd | $16,915 |
| Griffith, Morgan | Republican | VA | 9th | $36,500 |
| Grothman, Glenn | Republican | WI | 6th | $10,600 |
| Guthrie, Steven | Republican | KY | 2nd | $81,500 |
| Harper, Gregg | Republican | MS | 3rd | $33,800 |
| Harriis, Andy | Republican | MD | 1st | $3,000 |
| Hartzler, Vicki | Republican | MO | 4th | $10,500 |
| Hensarling, Jeb | Republican | TX | 5th | $10,000 |
| Hice, Jody | Republican | GA | 10th | $6,000 |
| Higgins, Clay | Republican | LA | 3rd | $300 |
| Holding, George | Republican | NC | 2nd | $31,100 |
| Hollingsworth, Trey | Republican | IN | 9th | $10,000 |
| Hudson, Richard | Republican | NC | 8th | $45,400 |
| Huizenga, Bill | Republican | MI | 2nd | $7,500 |
| Hultgreen, Randy | Republican | IL | 14th | $10,000 |
| Hunter, Duncan | Republican | CA | 50th | $19,000 |
| Hurd, William | Republican | TX | 23rd | $63,000 |
| Issa, Darrell | Republican | CA | 49th | $66,275 |
| Jenkins, Lynn | Republican | KS | 2nd | $34,750 |
| Jenkins, Evan | Republican | WV | 3rd | $10,000 |
| Johnson, Bill | Republican | OH | 6th | $56,500 |
| Johnson, Sam | Republican | TX | 3rd | $16,700 |
| Jordan, James | Republican | OH | 4th | $24,750 |
| Joyce, David | Republican | OH | 14th | $16,500 |
| Katko, John | Republican | NY | 24th | $32,250 |
| Kelly, Trent | Republican | MS | 1st | $3,300 |
| Kelly, Mike | Republican | PA | 3rd | $34,700 |
| King, Steve | Republican | IA | 4th | $20,500 |
| King, Peter | Republican | NY | 2nd | $9,000 |
| Kinzinger, Adam | Republican | IL | 16th | $75,250 |
| Knight, Steve | Republican | CA | 25th | $32,500 |
| Kustoff, David | Republican | TN | 8th | $16,300 |
| Labrador, Raul | Republican | ID | 1st | $10,000 |
| LaHood, Darin | Republican | IL | 18th | $15,500 |
| LaMalfa, Doug | Republican | CA | 1st | $5,000 |
| Lamborn, Doug | Republican | CO | 5th | $28,400 |
| Lance, Leonard | Republican | NJ | 7th | $43,000 |
| Latta, Bob | Republican | OH | 5th | $91,000 |
| Lewis, Jason | Republican | MN | 2nd | $10,500 |
| LoBiondo, Frank | Republican | NJ | 2nd | $14,500 |
| Long, Billy | Republican | MO | 7th | $57,250 |
| Loudermilk, Barry | Republican | GA | 11th | $8,000 |
| Love, Mia | Republican | UT | 4th | $16,500 |
| Lucas, Frank | Republican | OK | 3rd | $14,500 |
| Luetkemeyer, Blaine | Republican | MO | 3rd | $21,000 |
| MacArthur, Tom | Republican | NJ | 3rd | $19,000 |
| Marchant, Kenny | Republican | TX | 24th | $12,000 |
| Marshall, Roger | Republican | KS | 1st | $20,500 |
| Massie, Thomas | Republican | KY | 4th | $2,750 |
| Mast, Brian | Republican | FL | 18th | $10,500 |
| McCarthy, Kevin | Republican | CA | 23rd | $99,100 |
| McCaul, Michael | Republican | TX | 10th | $37,200 |
| McHenry, Patrick | Republican | NC | 10th | $51,000 |
| McKinley, David | Republican | WV | 1st | $24,500 |
| McSally, Martha | Republican | AZ | 2nd | $40,500 |
| Meadows, Mark | Republican | NC | 11th | $4,000 |
| Meehan, Patrick | Republican | PA | 7th | $64,200 |
| Messer, Luke | Republican | IN | 6th | $18,750 |
| Mitchell, Paul** | Republican | MI | 10th | $10,000 |
| McMorris-Rogers, Cathy** | Republican | WA | 5th | $75,900 |
| Moolenaar, John | Republican | MI | 4th | $12,500 |
| Mooney, Alexander | Republican | WV | 2nd | $6,000 |
| Mullin, Markwayne | Republican | OK | 2nd | $47,250 |
| Murphy, Timothy | Republican | PA | 18th | $26,000 |
| Newhouse, Daniel | Republican | WA | 4th | $10,000 |
| Noem, Kristi | Republican | SD | 1st | $38,200 |
| Nunes, Devin | Republican | CA | 22nd | $37,750 |
| Olson, Pete | Republican | TX | 22nd | $57,500 |
| Palazzo, Steven | Republican | MS | 4th | $11,100 |
| Palmer, Gary | Republican | AL | 6th | $2,000 |
| Paulsen, Erik | Republican | MN | 3rd | $50,500 |
| Pearce, Steve | Republican | NM | 2nd | $20,400 |
| Perry, Scott | Republican | PA | 4th | $17,000 |
| Poe, Ted | Republican | TX | 2nd | $23,000 |
| Poliquin, Bruce | Republican | ME | 2nd | $47,500 |
| Posey, Bill | Republican | FL | 8th | $3,000 |
| Ratcliffe, John | Republican | TX | 4th | $24,500 |
| Reed, Thomas | Republican | NY | 23rd | $31,500 |
| Renacci, Jim | Republican | OH | 16th | $48,000 |
| Rice, Hugh | Republican | SC | 7th | $18,500 |
| Roby, Martha | Republican | AL | 2nd | $33,200 |
| Roe, Phil | Republican | TN | 1st | $500 |
| Rogers, Mike | Republican | AL | 3rd | $25,000 |
| Rogers, Hal | Republican | KY | 5th | $12,500 |
| Rohrabacher, Dana | Republican | CA | 48th | $1,350 |
| Rokita, Todd | Republican | IN | 4th | $20,200 |
| Rooney, Laurence | Republican | FL | 19th | $16,625 |
| Rooney, Tom | Republican | FL | 17th | $19,000 |
| Roskam, Peter | Republican | IL | 6th | $33,600 |
| Ross, Dennis | Republican | FL | 15th | $17,000 |
| Rothfus, Keith | Republican | PA | 12th | $30,900 |
| Rouzer, David | Republican | NC | 7th | $15,000 |
| Royce, Edward | Republican | CA | 39th | $14,000 |
| Russell, Steven | Republican | OK | 5th | $16,450 |
| Rutherford, John | Republican | FL | 4th | $6,000 |
| Scalise, Steve | Republican | LA | 1st | $121,750 |
| Schweikert, David | Republican | AZ | 6th | $4,000 |
| Scott, James | Republican | GA | 8th | $6,000 |
| Sensenbrenner, Jim | Republican | WI | 5th | $30,000 |
| Sessions, Pete | Republican | TX | 32nd | $40,400 |
| Shimkus, John | Republican | IL | 15th | $104,425 |
| Shuster, Bill | Republican | PA | 9th | $35,500 |
| Smith, Jason | Republican | MO | 8th | $47,500 |
| Smith, Adrian | Republican | NE | 3rd | $28,500 |
| Smith, Christopher | Republican | NJ | 4th | $6,000 |
| Smith, Lamar | Republican | TX | 21st | $56,200 |
| Smucker, Lloyd | Republican | PA | 16th | $8,000 |
| Stewart, Chris | Republican | UT | 2nd | $12,500 |
| Stivers, Steve | Republican | OH | 15th | $27,000 |
| Taylor, Scott** | Republican | VA | 2nd | $14,000 |
| Tenney, Claudia | Republican | NY | 22nd | $8,500 |
| Thompson, Glenn | Republican | PA | 5th | $16,500 |
| Thornberry, Mac | Republican | TX | 13th | $32,025 |
| Tiberi, Patrick | Republican | OH | 12th | $53,250 |
| Tipton, Scott | Republican | CO | 3rd | $23,500 |
| Trott, Dave | Republican | MI | 11th | $12,500 |
| Turner, Mike | Republican | OH | 10th | $6,000 |
| Upton, Fred | Republican | MI | 6th | $108,250 |
| Valadao, David | Republican | CA | 21st | $37,400 |
| Wagner, Ann | Republican | MO | 2nd | $45,750 |
| Walberg, Timothy | Republican | MI | 7th | $38,500 |
| Walden, Gregory | Republican | OR | 2nd | $155,100 |
| Walker, Bradley | Republican | NC | 6th | $16,750 |
| Walorski, Jackie | Republican | IN | 2nd | $21,250 |
| Walters, Mimi | Republican | CA | 45th | $47,450 |
| Weber, Randy | Republican | TX | 14th | $4,000 |
| Webster, Daniel | Republican | FL | 11th | $2,500 |
| Wenstrup, Brad | Republican | OH | 2nd | $9,400 |
| Westerman, Bruce | Republican | AR | 4th | $11,000 |
| Williams, Roger | Republican | TX | 25th | $5,500 |
| Wilson, Joe | Republican | SC | 2nd | $11,500 |
| Wittman, Rob | Republican | VA | 1st | $11,050 |
| Womack, Steve | Republican | AR | 3rd | $15,500 |
| Woodall, Rob | Republican | GA | 7th | $9,250 |
| Yoho, Ted | Republican | FL: | 3rd | $4,000 |
| Young, Don | Republican | AK | 1st | $28,650 |
| Young, David | Republican | IA | 3rd | $41,750 |
*Data for this representative obtained from the Virginia Public Access Project.
**Data for this representative obtained from Open Secrets.
Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly identified Scott Garrett (R-NJ) as a Yes vote. Unfortunately for Mr. Garrett, he was voted out of Congress in 2016. The correct Garrett is Tom Garrett of Virginia. We apologize for the error.
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Comments
This is how ‘democracy’ is sold.
By raresh on 03.29.17 8:28am
The swamp in action. Now off to the President for approval…
By SasparillaFizz on 03.29.17 10:23am
This would’ve been the best time for Trump to jump in and "save America" as President…
By Alisan on 03.29.17 10:30am
Do you really think he has the slightest idea about what’s going on? He hardly has enough time to watch Fox and Friends, watch Morning Joe, have Twitter meltdowns and play golf. How can you expect him to read through policy documents and know what’s going on?
By Shadeslayer on 03.29.17 1:56pm
He has a freaking team that does all that for him,
Did you really think any of your previous Presidents had the slightest idea about what was going on?
By Alisan on 04.13.17 1:15pm
This guy is brilliant. Raising money to buy search history of senators who voted this bill www.gofundme.com/searchinternethistory
By raresh on 03.29.17 5:26pm
They have immunity.
By Aaron Harrington on 03.29.17 11:19pm
This is great. I donated and shared on Facebook.
By melillobm on 03.30.17 8:11am
Sure a lot of Democrats on that list….Oh, wait. F***ING REPUBLICANS!!! >:(
By MVEGA on 03.29.17 6:58pm
Apparently our privacy is only worth 300 dollars to Mr. Clay Higgins ( R ) from the 3rd district of Louisiana.
By SolarMane on 03.29.17 8:32am
Or unlike how this article portrays it, they didn’t sell their votes. Big companies donate to both parties. If they provided you with a list of democrats, you’d see contributions from the same companies to them.
Which goes to show this wasn’t about buying votes or influence, these members supported this bill. Blast them for that, but to act like these measly contributions were what made them vote for it, is laughable.
By Jaguar10301 on 03.29.17 9:12am
This is a list of people who voted in favour of the bill.
If Democrats didn’t vote in favour of the bill, they don’t show up here. Ergo, they weren’t "bought", even if Comcast gave them 10x the amount they gave every person on this list combined.
By monkeybars on 03.29.17 9:42am
Or neither was "bought" and there is a partisan divide on this issue. My point is the correlation of the money being contributed is not a causal link.
By Jaguar10301 on 03.29.17 9:45am
It doesn’t matter what they got paid. All that matters is that they all voted to sell your privacy and the vast majority of those who voted were Republicans. Not good.
By Jet247 on 03.29.17 9:53am
This I agree on. My issue was with the framing of the article.
By Jaguar10301 on 03.29.17 9:59am
It would certainly help if there was also a list documenting donations made to Democrats, even if they voted NO.
I think the comparison between the two would demonstrate if votes were bought and, if so, how much it cost to buy those votes (or not).
By Ollieollieollie on 03.29.17 10:39am
Yeah it’s a click-bait article pure and simple, not a full reporting of facts and laying it out. How can you accuse them of being paid for their votes and not point out that the companies donate to both parties.
By Jaguar10301 on 03.29.17 10:53am
Facts are: Republicans voted for this, Democrats didn’t. Both sides are not the same. Until you admit this, you are one of the dumbest people who follow politics.
By Cols714 on 03.29.17 10:57am
I think you’re missing the point of this thread. Yes, we all agree Republicans voted for the bill. What we don’t agree on was that it was about money.
By NothingUnknown on 03.29.17 11:01am
Who cares what it was about? Motive doesn’t matter in this case at all. What needs to be pointed out is who voted for this and who didn’t and reward the people who voted against this and punish the people who voted for this.
By Cols714 on 03.29.17 11:02am
Exactly and motive doesn’t matter, which is why I think this is a bad article because it’s the article that claims the motive
By Jaguar10301 on 03.29.17 11:06am
Whatever. You just want to excuse the people you help put in power by pretending that both sides suck equally.
One side sucks much much more.
By Cols714 on 03.29.17 11:08am
Why exactly do you think this money is for ?
By wagaf on 03.29.17 9:11pm
But isn’t the money as motive the case? I mean, you yourself said that the same companies donated money to the democrats as well, but apparently democrats did not vote in favor of the bill despite these donations. Judging by this, I do not see how the article is wrong about claiming the "donation" are a, if not the, biggest factor in why these representatives voted for it. The Republicans’ conviction and "ideals" certainly play a role, too, but the money "donated" to them has just as big an influence on that decision.
By Rivr on 03.30.17 5:07am
Tone-policing much?
By radderthanrad on 03.30.17 9:07am