Section 702

Congress punted the fight to reauthorize a key spy powers fight for more six weeks as privacy advocates see another opportunity to reform the controversial surveillance law.

House Freedom Caucus lawmakers have offered amendments that would bar intelligence agencies from searching Americans’ communications and prevent the creation of a central bank digital, which Rep. Michael Cloud (R-TX) has described as the “ultimate surveillance tool.”

Congress passed a short-term extension of a key government surveillance authority after House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) failed to ram through a clean extension of Section 702 of FISA over the interests of bipartisan lawmakers who want to reform the spy power.

President Donald Trump on Wednesday urged Republicans to pass a bill to reauthorize Section 702 of FISA without reforms, saying he would be willing to give up his “rights” for the program. 

Rep. Warren Davidson (R-OH) on Tuesday said he would introduce an amendment to a bill to reauthorize a key spy powers authority to prevent law enforcement and intelligence agencies from purchasing Americans’ data through third-party data brokers.

House Intel Committee Ranking Member Jim Himes (D-CT) last Friday said that he was “not aware” of the National Security Agency (NSA) purchasing Americans’ private communications despite years of reporting about the intelligence community purchasing Americans’ private information.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) told Breitbart News the only way she would accept a clean extension of Section 702 of FISA is if the SAVE America Act were attached to the legislation, arguing that “voter ID is national security.”

House Republican leaders will move a planned vote on a controversial surveillance plan to April after many conservatives balked at the idea of extending the surveillance authority without more reform, according to a report.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) on Wednesday laid out his case for why Congress needs to embrace a short and clean reauthorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Authority (FISA), a key surveillance authority.

Sens. Mike Lee and Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced legislation Monday that would protect Americans from warrantless government surveillance.

Attorney General Pam Bondi told Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) on Wednesday that the Trump administration is committed to working with Congress to end warrantless surveillance of Americans.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has removed Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH) from the chairmanship of the House’s intelligence committee, reportedly due to concerns President-elect Donald Trump had about Turner.

Reps. Scott Perry (R-PA) and Ronny Jackson (R-TX) on Wednesday were selected to serve on the House Intelligence Committee.

Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner (D-VA) on Monday tacitly admitted that there are concerns that need to be fixed about a controversial aspect of a recent spy powers reauthorization bill.

Rep. Mike Gallagher’s (R-WI) betrayal of his constituents will continue at least one day longer.

Lawmakers and privacy experts on both sides of the political spectrum are sounding the alarm on a provision in a spy powers reform bill that one senator described as one of the “most terrifying expansions of government surveillance” in history.

National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) chairman Rep. Richard Hudson (R-NC) finally publicly backed House Speaker Mike Johnson — or at least sort of. 

House Speaker Mike Johnson’s office told Breitbart News exclusively that he intends to remain as Speaker of the House after he cast the deciding vote against ending the deep state’s warrantless surveillance of American citizens on Friday.

Reps. Warren Davidson (R-OH) and Andy Biggs (R-AZ) in a statement on Thursday said President Joe Biden “cannot pretend” to protect Americans’ privacy while undermining congressional efforts to rein in surveillance, Breitbart News can reveal.

More than 30 bipartisan organizations urged Congress not to include a reauthorization of a surveillance law in a must-pass spending bill.

FreedomWorks President Adam Brandon on Tuesday warned congressional leaders against using the “specter” of a government shutdown to reauthorize deep state spy powers.

Rep. Bob Good called for the removal of Intelligence Committee Chair Mike Turner over his efforts to scuttle surveillance reform.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) announced on Wednesday that the House will no longer consider a government surveillance bill after the House Intelligence Committee was “smoked” by pro-reform lawmakers.

Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) introduced a measure necessitating that searches of Americans under Section 702 of FISA require a warrant.

Ratcliffe called for government surveillance powers reform amid a debate on whether Congress should reauthorize them by the end of the year.

The New York Times reported that the warrantless surveillance of Rep. Darin LaHood (R-IL) was a counterintelligence measure.

The House Intelligence Committee announced on Wednesday its working group to reform what is referred to as the “crown jewel” for American intelligence agencies.

Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) and Warren Davidson (R-OH) said in a joint statement on Wednesday that lawmakers need to seize the opportunity to secure Americans’ civil liberties. 

Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) told Breitbart News in an exclusive interview that there is “no chance in hell” that Congress reauthorizes the “crown jewel” for American intelligence agencies without a major fight from progressive and conservative lawmakers that want to reform.