“Senate candidate Mike Rogers took a $14 million payout as a pharma lobbyist.”

The claim that Michigan U.S. Senate candidate Mike Rogers received a '$14 million payout as a pharma lobbyist' is unsupported by any evidence and is factually incorrect based on federal and state records. 1. Lobbying Status: Federal and Michigan records do not show that Mike Rogers was ever a registered lobbyist. Under the Lobbying Disclosure Act, individuals who meet specific criteria (including compensation and time spent on lobbying activities) must register; Rogers does not appear in these registries as a pharmaceutical lobbyist. 2. Pharma Connection: Extensive reviews of financial disclosures and public records have found no evidence that Rogers worked for or advised pharmaceutical companies after leaving Congress. His post-Congress career primarily involved consulting for technology and cybersecurity companies, as well as serving on corporate boards. While he received a $30,000 payment from a lobbying firm (CGCN Group) before his 2024 Senate run, records indicate this was for strategic communications consulting, not lobbying for pharmaceutical interests. 3. Financial Misrepresentation: While Rogers' net worth has increased significantly since he left Congress in 2015, the '$14 million' figure appears to be a distortion of his total net worth growth rather than a single 'payout' or compensation for lobbying. There is no record of any single payment or series of payments matching this amount from the pharmaceutical industry. 4. Public Retraction: Following a cease-and-desist letter from the Rogers campaign, the originator of the claim, Abdul El-Sayed, partially walked back the statement in a social media video, admitting the inaccuracy of the 'pharma lobbyist' label.