The House of Representatives on Thursday rejected a bill to extend Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which gives the federal government the power to conduct warrantless surveillance of Americans, and now the spying tool is expected to lapse as its last extension will expire on Friday night.
The bill to renew Section 702 required a two-thirds majority but couldn’t even gain a simple majority as it failed in a vote of 198-218, with just seven Democrats voting in favor of the extension. Nineteen Republicans joined Democrats in opposing the bill.
“19 Republicans withheld our votes in order to preserve Constitutionally guaranteed rights,” Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) wrote on X. “By refusing to honor the Fourth Amendment, you’re jeopardizing the continuation of FISA. Include a WARRANT requirement for US citizens if you want Republicans to pass this bill.
Section 702, first enacted in 2008, authorizes warrantless surveillance targeting non-Americans overseas but also results in the collection of a vast amount of Americans’ communications. Those communications are retained in government databases and can be searched by US intelligence and law enforcement agencies without a warrant.
Efforts to extend Section 702 were also blocked in the Senate as Democrats said they won’t allow it to go through unless President Trump rescinds his decision to appoint Bill Pulte, who serves as the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, as the acting director of national intelligence.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) slammed Democrats for allowing the spy power to expire, saying they were “willing to JEOPARDIZE the safety and the security of the American people to make a cheap political point.”
President Trump has been calling for Congress to pass the Section 702 extension, even though his 2016 campaign was targeted under FISA. Earlier this year, the president said he was willing to give up his “rights and privileges” to extend the spying power, an acknowledgment that it violates civil liberties.
