FISA

The House on April 12 passed a revised version of a bill to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) for two years. This came two days after conservatives blocked the advancement of another version of the legislation, saying it didn’t go far enough to protect civil liberties. The bill passed by […]

The House advanced a modified version of a bill on April 12 to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). With the passage of the rule governing the bill—an intermediate procedural step before final passage—the bill itself will now be teed up for a vote on the House floor later on Friday. The Biden […]

The House Rules Committee on April 11 advanced a modified version of a bill to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). The rule, which passed the committee in an 8–4 party-line vote, will now be teed up for a vote on the House floor. The FISA legislation included in the rule […]

The House voted down on a procedure on April 10 that would open debate on reauthorizing FISA surveillance powers. Jeff Carlson, an investigative journalist, says section 702 of FISA has been “chronically abused,” and that its structural problems are impossible to fix with reforms.

Retired Col. John Mills, a senior fellow at the Center for Security Policy, warns of the risks associated with the potential lapse of Section 702 of the FISA Act, emphasizing the need for robust oversight and accountability to prevent the weaponization of surveillance powers.

President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met at the White House Wednesday and announced a major upgrade to the U.S.–Japan alliance. The upgrade covers greater defense and intelligence cooperation and aims to send a message to communist China. President Biden told Spanish-language TV station Univision that he plans to use executive powers […]

House conservatives on April 10 tanked a procedural vote to advance a surveillance power reauthorization bill in protest of its lack of warrant requirements. The development is another blow to Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who already faces an ouster threat from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.). In a 193–226 vote, lawmakers decided not to advance […]

The House is set to vote on the reauthorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), a law that allows warrantless surveillance of foreigners but also picks up the communications of American citizens in the process. Jonathan Hullihan, general counsel and director of Legal Operations at Citizens Defending Freedom, says FISA is […]

A Fulton County judge on Feb. 15 oversaw a hearing examining allegations of improper conduct by District Attorney Fani Willis in former President Donald Trump’s Georgia RICO case. The hearing centered around Ms. Willis and her romantic relationship with her special prosecutor Nathan Wade. On the same day, a judge in New York denied President […]

FBI Director Christopher Wray guaranteed election security during a roundtable discussion on how his agency, along with others, is partnering with public and private entities to combat misinformation and disinformation. Mr. Wray praised his partnership with Paul Nakasone, the National Security director and commander of the United States Cyber Command, who also attended the discussion. […]

Republican leadership in the House pulled two bills to reform and re-authorize the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, less than three weeks before a critical section of FISA sunsets on Dec. 31. But lawmakers are pushing to pass the National Defense Authorization Act, the annual defense bill, which would extend the spy program through April […]

A vote is set to be held Wednesday evening on formalizing the impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden after Hunter Biden defied his subpoena. What’s next in the probe into the Biden family? The White House was pressed to clarify President Biden’s private remarks that Israel is losing support. Is there a change in the […]

The House Committee on Rules meets to discuss H.R. 6570, the Protect Liberty and End Warrantless Surveillance Act and H.R. 6611, the FISA Reform and Reauthorization Act of 2023, at 4:00 p.m. ET on Dec. 11.  

Bipartisanship is a rare occurrence among members of the House Judiciary Committee, but on Nov. 6, it was widespread. The committee voted 35–2 to advance a bill that would amend Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) to prohibit warrantless queries for the communications of U.S. citizens and those located within the country—save […]

Christopher Wray, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), called on lawmakers to extend warrantless surveillance powers that he says supplies the president with much of the intelligence he receives daily. The Senate Judiciary Committee heard Mr. Wray’s arguments and questioned him about how the statute was used and whether it violates Americans’ constitutionally […]

FBI employees and agents inappropriately searched foreign surveillance data for the last names of a state senator and a U.S. senator, said a court opinion that was released Friday. The newly disclosed finding is included in the release of a 117-page order (pdf) declassified on July 16 by the federal judiciary’s foreign intelligence surveillance court in April—a […]

The House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance holds a hearing about “Fixing FISA, Part II” at 9:15 a.m. ET on July 14 to “examine the expansion of warrantless surveillance of Americans, the FBI’s continued abuses of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), and its failure to implement meaningful reforms.” Witnesses: Jonathan Turley, […]