U.S. Telecom Companies Grilled by Senate Over Lawmakers’ Phone Records

WASHINGTON — Executives from the nation’s largest telecommunications companies faced pointed and often angry questioning from U.S. senators on Tuesday after it was revealed that phone records belonging to several lawmakers were handed over to federal investigators as part of a probe into the January 6, 2021 Capitol attack.

Attorneys representing AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile testified before a Senate Judiciary subcommittee during a two-hour hearing focused on how and why the companies complied with Justice Department subpoenas seeking the data.

The controversy erupted last October when a 2023 court document became public, showing that the FBI had obtained so-called “toll records” — logs of phone calls and text messages — from eight sitting U.S. senators. The records were collected as part of special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into former President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election and the subsequent assault on the U.S. Capitol by his supporters.

Companies Defend Actions, Promise Reforms

All three telecom firms acknowledged receiving subpoenas from federal investigators but insisted they had followed the law in responding to them. They also said they process hundreds of thousands of similar law enforcement requests every year.

However, under intense pressure from lawmakers, company representatives admitted that their internal procedures for handling sensitive requests involving members of Congress had been insufficient.

“We should have had a better process,” Verizon attorney Chris Miller told the panel. Miller said Verizon is now implementing new safeguards, including expanding protections to cover not only official congressional phone numbers but also lawmakers’ personal and campaign devices. He added that the company would, going forward, notify senators when their records are requested — unless legally prohibited — or challenge efforts to keep such requests secret. Still, he defended Verizon’s prior conduct, stating, “We followed the law.”

AT&T and T-Mobile delivered similar messages.

AT&T officials said they are developing new systems to ensure they can identify all phone numbers associated with members of Congress, not just those officially issued by the government. The goal, the company said, is to “meet members’ reasonable expectations of privacy to the full extent permitted by law.”

T-Mobile general counsel Mark Nelson also defended his company’s actions while acknowledging that procedures have since been updated to include additional protections for lawmakers.

Senators Express Outrage

Despite those assurances, several senators made clear they were furious over what they described as a lack of scrutiny before handing over highly sensitive information.

“You turned over pieces of information from every senator who got an illegal subpoena,” Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri said directly to Verizon’s representative. “You turned it over with no process at all.” Hawley was among the senators whose phone data was obtained during the investigation.

Lawmakers pressed the companies on why they did not challenge the subpoenas more aggressively or seek clarification from Congress before complying. The telecom firms argued that they are legally obligated to respond to valid court orders and have limited ability to question federal investigators’ requests.

Political Undercurrents

Democrats noted that many of the senators whose records were sought were Republicans who had supported Trump’s efforts to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, suggested that Republicans were attempting to minimize the seriousness of Trump’s actions surrounding January 6.

Durbin pointed out that, according to prosecutors, Trump and his associates had contacted certain lawmakers in an effort to pressure them into delaying certification of Joe Biden’s election victory. “I did not choose those members — President Trump did,” Durbin said, quoting remarks previously made by special counsel Smith.

Background on the Investigation

Jack Smith was appointed in 2022 to oversee federal investigations related to Trump’s actions after the 2020 election and his role in the events leading up to the Capitol riot. Trump was ultimately charged with attempting to obstruct the peaceful transfer of power. However, the case never went to trial due to lengthy legal battles.

After Trump won re-election in 2024, Smith dropped the prosecution, citing longstanding Justice Department policy that bars criminal charges against a sitting president. Even so, Smith later released a report stating that the evidence gathered would have been sufficient to convict Trump had the case moved forward.

Ongoing Fallout

Tuesday’s hearing underscored the continuing political and legal fallout from the January 6 investigation, as well as growing concerns about privacy and the power of federal subpoenas.

While telecom companies pledged to improve their practices, many senators made it clear they remain deeply uneasy about how easily their personal communications were accessed.

The Judiciary subcommittee is expected to continue examining whether additional legal protections are needed to safeguard lawmakers — and ordinary Americans — from what some described as overly broad government surveillance powers.