US Congress Fails to Pass Long-Term FISA Extension, Authorizes It Through April 30 (cnn.com)
- Reference: 0181750604
- News link: https://yro.slashdot.org/story/26/04/18/1834202/us-congress-fails-to-pass-long-term-fisa-extension-authorizes-it-through-april-30
- Source link: https://www.cnn.com/2026/04/17/politics/house-fisa-foreign-surveillance
> The warrantless surveillance law, known as Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, was set to expire on Monday night. Members are hoping the additional time will allow them to come to agreement without ending authorization for the intelligence gathering program, which permits US officials to monitor phone calls and text messages from foreign targets... There was an hour of suspense in the Senate Friday morning when it appeared possible that Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden, a longtime critic of FISA 702, might block the House-passed extension. But ultimately, he said his House colleagues had assured him "this short-term extension makes reform more likely, and expiration makes reform less likely," and so he chose not to object....
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> House Republican leaders believed Thursday night they had struck a deal with conservative holdouts who harbor deep and longstanding concerns that a key piece of the law infringes on Americans' privacy rights. But in a pair of after-midnight votes, more than a dozen rank-and-file Republicans rejected the long-term reauthorization plan on the floor, which was the result of days of tense negotiations among leadership, lawmakers and the White House.
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> The law allows authorized US officials to gather phone calls and text messages of foreign targets, but they can also incidentally collect the data of Americans in the process. Senior national security officials have for years said the law is critical for thwarting terror attacks, stemming the flow of fentanyl into the US and stopping ransomware attacks on critical infrastructure. Civil liberties groups on the left and the right, meanwhile, argue the surveillance authority risks infringing on Americans' privacy.
[1] https://www.cnn.com/2026/04/17/politics/house-fisa-foreign-surveillance
Re: (Score:3)
> supported this too, without question.
It turns out neither of them are president right now and thus your comment is irrelevant to the situation at hand. Even in politics not everything needs to be about partisanship. We criticised Obama at the time, we criticised Biden at the time, and we will criticise Trump, just like we did last time too (except for DrMrLordX who insisted in 2024 that Trump won't pass this because he's mad it was used against his staffers in 2026 [sic - he meant 2016], lets see how well his post ages).
not the case (Score:2)
" But ultimately, he said his House colleagues had assured him "this short-term extension makes reform more likely, and expiration makes reform less likely," and so he chose not to object...."
Bullshit, reform will only be likely if we arrest, try, and execute every person who lobbies for this act to remain in force.
FISA ? What sport is that? (Score:3)
I know FIFA is soccer
and FIA is Formula 1 racing (But they got paused by the Gulf War, and I got a note today from F!-TV saying my subscription is expiring and is not available for renewal)