FISA Section 702 renewal stalls in House as GOP infighting persists

GOP House leadership is struggling to win over GOP privacy hawks as lawmakers race to expand a powerful government surveillance program before Thursday’s deadline.

The House Rules Committee on Tuesday postponed consideration of a rule calling for a housewide vote on extending Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) as Republicans remain sharply divided on the program.

The plan would renew the espionage law for three years and impose new penalties for misuse of FISA searches. But the measure falls short of including a consent requirement sought by GOP privacy hawks who want tougher privacy guardrails adopted.

The delayed committee action raises doubts about whether House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) can pass the extension of the legislation before it expires on April 30.

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Increasing obstacles to passage of the FISA renewal in the House could also allow the Senate to act first, forcing the lower chamber to swallow whatever is passed. The Senate is scheduled to hold a procedural vote on a three-year extension bill later Tuesday.

Democrats on the House Rules Committee criticized Republicans for indefinitely delaying consideration of the measure after agreeing to a previously scheduled hearing Tuesday morning to consider the procedural measure. The panel adjourned Monday evening after an hours-long session to give Republicans more time to reach a deal.

“Democrats came to the Rules Committee for an 8 a.m. meeting after waiting all night for Republicans to agree with them on a procedural rule for the week,” Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., wrote on social media. “Unsurprisingly, when we arrived we were told there was still no deal.

“Their chaos is matched only by their incompetence,” he added.

The stalled rule also delays consideration of a budget plan to fund immigration enforcement and a sweeping bill known as the farm bill authorizing agriculture and nutrition priorities that GOP leadership hopes to introduce to the legislature this week.

House conservatives, who rejected two previous proposals offered by GOP leadership, have so far withheld their support for reauthorizing Section 702’s missing reforms.

Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., battered Republicans on the House panel for considering a procedural measure that would expedite a vote on Section 702 of FISA, among other legislation. (Tom Williams/Getty Images)

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The spy tool allows the government to spy on foreigners abroad using U.S. platforms, even if those communications involve Americans. A mix of conservatives and progressives have long advocated for changes to the program to force intelligence officials to get permission before reviewing Americans’ data.

Many conservative lawmakers on Monday criticized the leadership’s proposal as a minor rehash of the original 18-month extension bill that failed in the House.

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, a key member of the House Freedom Caucus (HFC), said during debate on the measure in the House Rules Committee: “What we’re essentially doing is taking existing legislative improvements going back two years, making some improvements on penalties and FISA transparency… but not going any further on guaranteed protections for warrantless surveillance of American citizens.”

HFC members sought to add an order requirement to the bill and language banning central bank digital currency (CBDC); They said the policies were critical to winning their votes.

“Even as we work to correct the wrongs and abuses of FISA, it is important that we permanently ban central bank digital currency, which will be the ultimate tool of surveillance against our citizens,” Rep. Michael Cloud, R-Texas, said in a statement to Fox News Digital. he said.

The Trump administration has pushed for a clean reauthorization of the program, citing the law’s critical national security role. Advocates of the espionage law have praised the law’s ability to gather intelligence that stops potential terrorist attacks and drug trafficking.

Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, a key GOP privacy advocate, offered his support for a three-year extension of FISA in a social media post last week.

“Collectively, this set of reforms provides strong privacy protections for American citizens. Congress should bank this win and reauthorize Section 702,” Davidson said. “So we must quickly begin to eviscerate the surveillance state that has grown unchecked during these 702 wars.”

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, a member of the House Rules Committee, is pushing for changes to the three-year FISA renewal bill drafted by House leadership. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

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House Democratic leadership on Monday previewed Republicans’ objections to the FISA reauthorization plan. Widespread Democratic opposition means Johnson can only handle a handful of defections from the GOP during a critical procedural vote that could take place as soon as Tuesday afternoon.

“This surveillance mechanism can be abused by people like Kash Patel and the acting attorney general,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (DY) said at a press conference Monday. “These people have weaponized the criminal justice system and cannot be trusted to protect the privacy and civil liberties of the American people.”