The revelations have increased scrutiny on Phillips as well as Collins, the Georgia Republican who is currently running for Senate. Collins’s lawyer has dismissed the charges.
We take a look.
Who is Brandon Phillips?
Brandon Phillips is the former chief of staff for US Representative Mike Collins. He is now working for Collins' Senate campaign, as per Associated Press (AP).
Collins is among the Republican frontrunners seeking to defeat Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff in Georgia this year. The other contenders include Representative Buddy Carter and former University of Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley.
Phillips, 39, has a history of legal troubles.
A longtime Republican political operative, he was Donald Trump's state director in 2016 until reports surfaced that he had previously been charged with battery and felony criminal damage.
Phillips pleaded guilty to lesser criminal trespassing and battery charges after admitting he destroyed a person’s laptop and slashed another person’s tyres.
In 2022, he was reportedly arrested on a misdemeanour animal cruelty charge for kicking a woman’s dog. He was later released on a $1,200 bond.
ALSO READ: Is Trump likely to fire Kash Patel? The controversies of the FBI director, explained
What’s in the report?
The Office of Congressional Conduct released a 37-page report on Monday (January 5) flagging allegations over the hiring of a past intern in Collins’ office.
According to the OCC report, the congressman's office paid more than $10,000 (Rs 899,070) to a woman named Caroline Craze once in late 2023 and again in late 2024 as a “District Office Paid Intern”.
The report claimed the intern “did not perform duties commensurate with her compensation.”
“Based on the foregoing information, the Board finds that there is substantial reason to believe that Mr. Phillips discriminated unfairly by dispensing special favors or privileges by participating in the retention of an employee with whom Mr. Phillips had a personal relationship,”
As per The Hill’s report, former and current members of Collins’ office claimed that Craze had not worked as an intern in the congressman’s district or Washington, DC, offices during those periods. Some said that Phillips was in a personal relationship with Craze. Several witnesses indicated that Phillips was involved in Craze’s hiring.
Representative Mike Collins speaks during Turning Point USA's AmericaFest 2025, on December 20, 2025, in Phoenix. File Photo/AP
Caroline Craze worked at Cox Communications during the period she was on the congressional office payroll, according to her LinkedIn account.
“Although several witnesses indicated that Ms. Craze may have had a limited role supporting some work carried out by Rep. Collins’s staff in 2023 and 2024, current and former staffers who worked in his Washington, D.C. Office while Ms. Craze was on Rep. Collins’s payroll told the OCC that she never served as a D.C. intern—which, like the District Intern position, was an in-person position,” the OCC report said.
The OCC report also mentioned many complaints related to Phillips’ House salary and travel expenses, as per
However, the OCC said in the latter cases that the watchdog “was not able to reach a determination at this time on whether there is a substantial reason to believe the additional allegations.”
As per the OCC report, there was “substantial reason to believe” that Collins and Phillips “used congressional resources for unofficial or otherwise unauthorized purposes” and “discriminated unfairly by dispensing special favors or privileges by retaining an employee with whom” Phillips had a personal relationship.
On Collins, the report further said, “There is substantial reason to believe that Rep. Collins retained an employee who did not perform duties commensurate with the compensation the employee received.”
Some witnesses alleged they feared a potential retaliation from Phillips, citing reports of his past violent criminal behaviour, according to the OCC.
The Congressional watchdog has suggested issuing subpoenas to Collins, Philips and the intern, among others.
Allegations under review
The US House of Representatives Ethics Committee said on Monday it is reviewing allegations against both Collins and Phillips.
Ethics Committee leaders announced the investigation following the release of the OCC report.
Collins’ office has dismissed the allegations.
In a letter published with the OCC report, Russell Duncan, a lawyer for Collins and Phillips, urged that the Ethics Committee vote to reject the charges against his clients. Duncan claimed that the referrals were the result of testimony from “two disgruntled, former members of Congressman Collins staff.”
“This bogus complaint is a sad attempt to derail one of Georgia’s most effective conservative legislators in Congress,” a statement from Collins’ office said, as per
The attorney also defended Phillips’s decision to hire Craze, saying the recruitment was proper. He said that “the evidence is that this temporary hiring was proper and done to assist the Office in serving the interests of the District. Mr. Phillips’s decision to hire this intern was well within his discretion in managing the Congressman’s office.”
“This intern provided valuable assistance to the Office throughout both years regarding communications and other work of the Office,” Duncan added.
This is not the first time a high-profile figure has come under scrutiny for using federal resources on their partner. FBI Director Kash Patel has also faced flak over the use of government resources to protect his girlfriend.
With inputs from agencies
