Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) pushed back Tuesday against the Supreme Court's request for a $20 million budget increase, dismissing the need for additional security funding with a sharp rebuke: “There’s not a money fairy up here.”
Speaking on Fox News, Kennedy, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, argued that the justices already enjoy robust protection. “They have better security than everybody else,” he said. “Their favorite type of spending is more.”
The comments came just after Justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett made rare appearances before congressional panels to defend the court’s $228 million budget request for fiscal year 2026, which begins October 1. The proposed increase includes over $15 million for security enhancements, such as expanding each justice’s personal security detail by six agents and establishing an off-site residential security office.
Barrett, whose Virginia home was targeted in a “swatting” incident this spring, told House lawmakers that federal judges face a “really high” threat level nationwide. The U.S. Marshals Service has recorded at least 370 threats against federal judges this fiscal year, prompting more than 500 protective investigations.
“The statistics sound abstract, but being on the receiving end of them is not,” Barrett said, recalling an interaction with her son after she came home wearing a bulletproof vest following the leak of the Dobbs decision in 2022, which overturned the constitutional right to abortion.
That leak sparked protests outside the Supreme Court and the homes of conservative justices. Justice Brett Kavanaugh was also the target of an assassination attempt by Sophie Roske, who arrived at his Maryland home armed with a pistol, zip ties, and pepper spray.
Each justice currently has a personal security detail of four to eight officers, a number Barrett said fluctuates based on need, such as if a justice is expected to be “more in the limelight” at a public event. “Over time, we’d like that detail number to increase,” Kagan told lawmakers.
While acknowledging the justices “feel insecure,” Kennedy cautioned against “throwing money at the problem.” He added, “I don’t mean to sound unsympathetic, but four to eight cops with you at all times as part of your security detail is strong as horseradish. I’ll take a look at their request, but I’m not going to just automatically treat them any differently.”
The debate over Supreme Court security comes amid broader discussions on judicial safety. For more on the justices’ recent testimony, see Kagan and Barrett Detail Surge in Threats as Supreme Court Seeks Security Boost and Barrett Reveals Bulletproof Vest, Swatting Incident as Justices Push for $14M Security Boost.
