In the US, they want to extend the FISA intelligence program without judicial oversight of citizens' data
Kyiv • UNN
Speaker Mike Johnson proposes to extend FISA 702 for three years without warrants for Americans' data. Trump is ready to risk rights for security, the committee will consider the compromise on Monday.
US House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, is pushing a new proposal to extend a key U.S. intelligence tool. His bill, introduced on Thursday, is almost identical to the previous version that failed during a series of nighttime votes earlier this month. NPR reports this, writes UNN.
Details
At the center of the discussion is Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which expires on April 30.
FISA 702 allows U.S. intelligence agencies to intercept electronic communications of foreign nationals outside the United States. Among the approximately 350,000 foreign targets whose communications are collected under this provision, there are those who communicate with Americans, so their calls, messages, and emails may end up in government databases for analysis.
For over two decades, bipartisan privacy advocates in Congress have been trying to impose a requirement for a mandatory court warrant before intelligence agencies query data on Americans obtained through this program. The absence of such a provision was one of the reasons for the failure of the attempt to extend the program for 18 months, as well as a separate vote for a five-year extension.
Representatives of the Donald Trump administration, like previous governments, argue that a warrant requirement would complicate law enforcement work and could threaten national security. Johnson's new plan provides for extending the program for three years without a warrant requirement. Instead, it proposes requiring the FBI to monthly explain queries of Americans' data to a special oversight body, as well as introducing criminal liability for intentional abuses.
Donald Trump stated that he is ready to "risk citizens' rights" for the sake of extending the program, calling it necessary to protect the military and population from terrorist threats.
Experts assess the new bill as an attempt at compromise between security agencies and privacy advocates. At the same time, critics believe that this is essentially a simple extension without significant reforms and sufficient control over abuses.
Despite statements about seeking a bipartisan solution, agreement in Congress has not yet been reached. Some Republicans also oppose the changes, demanding stronger guarantees of civil rights inviolability.
The House Rules Committee is set to consider the bill on Monday, which will be the first step toward a possible vote on its extension.