# Scott Perry Scott Gordon Perry (b. 1962) is a Republican **U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania's 10th district** (2013–present) and former **chairman of the House Freedom Caucus** (2021–2023) who served as the **critical human link between Donald Trump and Jeffrey Clark** — the DOJ official Trump nearly installed as Acting Attorney General to force the department to support his election fraud claims. Perry's phone was seized by the FBI in August 2022 as part of the January 6 investigation, making him the most senior sitting congressman to have his communications physically confiscated by federal law enforcement. Perry matters for the KB because he is the **operational layer** beneath the more visible MAGA figures. While Giuliani held press conferences and Meadows sent texts, Perry was the one who found Jeffrey Clark, introduced him to Trump, and facilitated the plan to weaponize the DOJ itself. He is also the clearest case of a Freedom Caucus chairman whose radicalization went beyond policy obstruction to active participation in an attempt to overturn an election. ## Background - Born May 27, 1962, in San Diego, California; raised in Pennsylvania - Pennsylvania State University (B.S., 1991), U.S. Army War College (M.S., 2012) - **Military career:** [[Army National Guard]] (1980–2019), retired as Brigadier General; flew Black Hawk helicopters in Iraq ([[Operation Iraqi Freedom]]); 39 years of service - Pennsylvania state legislature (2007–2013), then U.S. House (2013–present) ## The Jeffrey Clark Connection Perry's most consequential act was introducing Trump to **[[Jeffrey Clark]]**, a relatively obscure DOJ environmental lawyer who was willing to do what Acting AG Jeffrey Rosen and Deputy AG Richard Donoghue refused: use the Department of Justice to support Trump's election fraud claims. **The timeline:** - **Late December 2020:** Perry introduced Trump to Clark, having identified him as a DOJ official sympathetic to Stop the Steal claims - **December 28, 2020:** Clark drafted a letter (never sent) to Georgia officials falsely claiming the DOJ had "identified significant concerns" about the election — a letter Rosen and Donoghue blocked - **January 3, 2021:** Trump considered replacing Rosen with Clark as Acting AG. In an Oval Office meeting, DOJ leadership and White House Counsel threatened mass resignation if Clark was installed. Trump backed down. Had Trump installed Clark, the DOJ would have officially endorsed election fraud claims three days before January 6. Perry's role in finding and connecting Clark to Trump placed him at the center of the most dangerous institutional subversion attempt in the post-election period. ## The Phone Seizure (August 2022) On August 9, 2022 — the same day the FBI searched [[Mar-a-Lago]] for classified documents — FBI agents **seized Perry's personal cell phone** pursuant to a federal court-authorized search warrant. Perry called the seizure "an outrage" and fought in court to block access to the phone's contents, citing Speech or Debate Clause congressional privilege. The courts partially sided with Perry, ruling that some communications were privileged but that many were not — particularly those related to his personal involvement in election subversion rather than official legislative activity. **What the seizure revealed about the investigation's scope:** The DOJ does not seek warrants against sitting congressmen lightly. The decision to seize Perry's phone indicated that investigators had probable cause to believe the phone contained evidence of federal crimes — likely conspiracy to defraud the United States or obstruction of an official proceeding. Perry was never indicted, but his proximity to the investigation's center shaped his subsequent behavior: as Freedom Caucus chairman, he became one of the most aggressive advocates for defunding the FBI and DOJ. ## Freedom Caucus Chairmanship (2021–2023) Perry led the Freedom Caucus during its most confrontational period: - **15-ballot Speaker fight (January 2023):** Perry was among the holdouts who extracted concessions from McCarthy - **Weaponization Subcommittee:** Supported Jordan's subcommittee investigating the very agencies that had investigated Perry - **FBI defunding push:** Led calls to defund the FBI, with the obvious personal motivation of an official whose phone had been seized - **Government shutdown brinkmanship:** Pushed for shutdowns as leverage, willing to accept economic consequences The personal-political overlap is the defining feature of Perry's chairmanship: the FC's anti-FBI agenda was simultaneously an ideological position and a personal defense strategy for its chairman. ## The Radicalization Pattern Perry's career follows a now-familiar trajectory: | Phase | Perry's position | Pattern | |-------|-----------------|---------| | **2013–2016** | Conventional conservative, Tea Party–aligned | Standard FC member | | **2017–2019** | Trump-aligned but within normal bounds | Loyalty signaling | | **2020** | Active participant in election subversion (Clark introduction) | Operational involvement | | **2021–2023** | FC chairman targeting the agencies investigating him | Institutional retaliation | | **2023–present** | One of the most radical members, fully committed to MAGA governance destruction | No path back | ## See Also - [[Jeffrey Clark]] — The DOJ official Perry introduced to Trump to weaponize the department - [[Jim Jordan]] — Freedom Caucus co-founder, Weaponization Subcommittee chair - [[Mark Meadows]] — Chief of Staff during the election subversion period - [[Matt Gaetz]] — FC ally who filed the motion to vacate - [[House Freedom Caucus]] — The faction Perry chaired during its most confrontational period - [[January 6 Capitol Attack]] — The event Perry's Clark scheme was designed to facilitate - [[Stop the Steal]] — The operation Perry participated in at the DOJ level