About
Scott Perry (R-Pa.) is a right-wing congressman who has represented what is now Pennsylvania’s 10th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2013. He became chair of the renegade House Freedom Caucus in January 2022, ran for reelection in the midterms with Trump’s endorsement, and won with 54% of the vote. In February 2023, Salon labeled him “the most dangerous insurrectionist you’ve never heard of.”
Prior to being elected to Congress, Perry was a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 2007–12. From 1980 to 2019, he served in the Army, rising to the rank of brigadier general. In the private sector, he founded Hydrotech Mechanical Services, a mechanical services contracting firm.
In 2003, Perry faced criminal charges when the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection accused Hydrotech of doctoring pollution discharge monitoring reports. However, he pleaded no contest to the charges and entered Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition, which led to the criminal charges being dropped and Perry keeping the security clearance he gained during his military service. He said that his behavior may have been “cavalier” but was not criminal.
After the 2020 presidential election, Perry was especially outspoken in leading the congressional charge to cast doubt on the legitimacy of Biden’s victory. He spread and embellished the Big Lie, objected to certifying the Electoral College results, and voted against both impeaching Trump for inciting the mob and establishing a special House committee to investigate the insurrection, among other measures.
January 6, 2021
- Just hours after Trump supporters stormed the Capitol, Perry joined 146 other congressional Republicans in refusing to certify Biden’s win of the 2020 presidential election.
- Perry voted against impeaching Trump for his role in instigating the attack on Congress and the Capitol, and for fanning the flames once the riot broke out.
- Perry voted against establishing a House committee to investigate the genesis of the violent assault that disrupted the congressional proceedings underway that day.
- Perry was the first sitting member of Congress the House Select Committee investigating the attack on the Capitol asked to sit for an interview. Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) released a statement announcing that the committee had received information from multiple witnesses “tying Rep. Perry” to Jan. 6. This included evidence of “his involvement in efforts to install former Department of Justice official Jeffrey Clark as acting Attorney General.”
- On Dec. 21, 2021, Perry rejected the request to be interviewed and refused to provide documents to the House Select Committee. In a statement, he claimed, “The Americans I represent… know that [the House panel] is illegitimate, and not duly constituted under the rules of the U.S. House of Representatives.”
- In August 2022, the FBI seized Perry’s cell phone in conjunction with his conspiring with Trump and others to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. “None of this is the government’s business,” the congressman groused. “As with President Trump…, DOJ chose this unnecessary and aggressive action instead of simply contacting my attorneys. These kinds of banana republic tactics should concern every citizen.”
- In late October 2022, Perry inexplicably dropped his lawsuit demanding that the DOJ return his phone and stop searching through it.
The Big Lie
- Perry led the efforts to reject Pennsylvania’s electors and announced his opposition to certification of the 2020 Electoral College in a tweet that read, “When Members of our PA General Assembly have concerns, it’s my DUTY to have concerns, too. The PA Senate has asked Congress to DELAY cert of EC to allow for due process in pursuit of election integrity in a key case before SCOTUS—I’m obliged to concur.”
- According to the New York Times, Perry helped facilitate meetings between Trump’s inner circle and Philadelphia lawyer Jeffrey Clark, the acting assistant attorney general at the DOJ who supported the Big Lie and was eager to help Trump challenge legitimate election results in Georgia, Pennsylvania, and elsewhere.
- Perry was a key point of contact for White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows to get in touch with Pennsylvania state lawmakers to coordinate on strategies for overturning the election results. Publicly disclosed text messages from Meadows to Perry show that the former chief of staff wrote on Nov. 21, 2020: “Can you send me the number for the speaker and the leader of PA Legislature. POTUS wants to chat with them.”
- On repeated occasions, Perry urged Meadows to get the National Security Agency to investigate unfounded allegations that various international powers—including China, the UK, and Italy—had interfered with voting machines during the 2020 election.
- On Nov. 6 and Dec. 1, 2020, Perry signed letters to Attorney General Bill Barr urging the Justice Department to investigate allegations of fraud in the 2020 election.
- On Dec. 9, 2020, Perry joined 27 fellow House Republicans in sending a letter to President Trump urging him to tell Attorney General Bill Barr to appoint a special counsel to investigate reported irregularities in the 2020 presidential election.
- On Dec. 10, 2020, Perry signed an amicus brief in a lawsuit filed by the state of Texas urging the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the results of the presidential election in four swing states: Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
Top contributors for the 2024 election cycle.
The organizations themselves did not donate, rather the money came from the organization's PAC, its individual members or employees or owners, and those individuals' immediate families.
| Organization Name | Total | PACs | Individuals |
|---|---|---|---|
| House Freedom Fund | $236,181.00 | $6,000.00 | $230,181.00 |
| Club for Growth | $51,787.00 | $0.00 | $51,787.00 |
| American Israel Public Affairs Cmte | $21,250.00 | $5,000.00 | $16,250.00 |
| Brodie Generational Capital Partners | $13,200.00 | $0.00 | $13,200.00 |
| Energy Transfer Partners | $13,200.00 | $0.00 | $13,200.00 |
| KBS Inc (Pennsylvania) | $13,200.00 | $0.00 | $13,200.00 |
| Ritter Insurance Marketing | $13,200.00 | $0.00 | $13,200.00 |
| Community Bancshares of Mississippi | $11,000.00 | $6,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| Defend Freedom PAC | $10,000.00 | $10,000.00 | $0.00 |
| E-PAC | $10,000.00 | $10,000.00 | $0.00 |