Georgia Rep. Mike Collins’ chief of staff hired his girlfriend as an intern, and paid her more than $10,000 despite her lackluster work ethic, according to former staffers who revealed the nepotistic feat.
According to a Daily Mail exclusive, Brandon Phillips, 39, gave an open internship role to his girlfriend Caroline Craze, 26. Public database Legistorm revealed that Craze was paid $5,244 in 2024 for working less than eight weeks, from Oct. 7 through Dec. 5. She was also paid $5,044 in 2023 for working from Nov. 4 to Dec. 31.
In total, Craze earned more than $10,000 for her pair of short-term stints, but former staffers say that Craze “rarely showed up for work.”
Former District Director Jessica Hayes confronted Phillips about Craze’s role after being contacted by the office’s financial department. But after probing the matter, Hayes was fired.
Hayes was unaware at the time that Craze and Phillips were in a relationship, and didn’t even know the intern’s name due to Craze never being in the office.
“The nerve to hire his girlfriend, which he did, is one thing,” a former Collins aide told the Daily Mail. “But to remove a beloved district director when she began asking questions is beyond the pale.”
Craze’s LinkedIn profile does not list her internship at Collins’ office as part of her professional experience. Her “About” section states that she is “actively seeking employment.”
Staffers have also alleged that Phillips paid himself the highest possible salary for his chief of staff role and used official funds to pay for both his and Craze’s travel between Washington, D.C., and Georgia, with a former staffer calling the act “a slap in the face.”
“Brandon Phillips consistently engaged in unhinged behavior, often putting his desire for growing Collins’ Twitter clout above Constituent service,” said the former staffer, who added that Collins “was often made aware that his office’s revolving door of staff was due to the unhealthy environment Brandon fostered.”
Legistorm shows Phillips’ yearly salary in 2024 set at $202,125, up from $139,227 in 2023—a 45 percent raise. The maximum salary for House staffers in 2024 was $212,100.
This is not the first time Phillips has landed himself in hot water. He made headlines in 2022 when he was arrested on misdemeanor charges of animal cruelty after kicking a dog.
The animal cruelty charges did not interfere with his career, though, as Phillips would go on to become Collins’ top aide.
Prior to his work with Collins, Phillips briefly served as Donald Trump’s Georgia campaign executive director in 2016, but was forced to resign when his criminal past was revealed. According to Atlanta’s WSB-TV, Phillips was arrested on battery and felony criminal damage charges in 2008. He admitted to slashing a person’s tires and destroying another person’s laptop, and pleaded guilty to criminal trespassing charges.
A spokesperson for Collins’ office denied the allegations to the Daily Mail, saying the claims “are nothing more than two disgruntled, terminated employees, sore from having their government gravy train ride come to an end and want revenge.”
“Ms. Craze was an excellent team member, handling numerous tasks and assisting multiple other coworkers,” the spokesperson added. “No funds were ever used to shuttle Ms. Craze back and forth as alleged and that claim is baseless.”
Collins’ office declined to speak on the matter when the Daily Beast reached out.
