GoKawiilA warrantless wiretapping authority that has facilitated surveillance for decades is up for renewal in Congress. Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), last reauthorized in 2024, is set to expire on April 20th. A bipartisan coalition of progressive Democrats and members of the hard-right Freedom Caucus say it’s long overdue for reform. But they’re up against powerful figures in both parties who want to deliver a “clean” reauthorization, even as critics warn the rule is allowing President Donald Trump’s administration to spy on anyone — even Americans.
Section 702, first enacted in 2008, formally allows for the surveillance of foreign “targets.” It lets federal intelligence agencies like the FBI, NSA, CIA, and the National Counterterrorism Center access the communications of any “non-US persons” not in the US, meaning noncitizens residing outside the country. If the government wants an American’s communications, however, all it has to do is determine they’re talking to a non-US person. Critics call this the “backdoor search loophole.” Section 702’s last reauthorization was a contentious, drawn-out process that involved several failed votes. The authority was renewed just after midnight on April 20th of that year, meaning that it technically lapsed, though just for a few minutes.
This time around, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has chosen to delay the vote in what critics say is an attempt to suppress the bipartisan effort to reform FISA.
Section 702 has been contentious since whistleblower Edward Snowden revealed details about its use in 2013, but progressives are especially wary in light of the Trump administration’s well-documented abuses of US spying capabilities. Between 2018 and 2020, the FBI used Section 702 to run searches on a member of Congress, campaign donors, more than 130 Black Lives Matter protesters, and “multiple current and former United States Government officials, journalists, and political commentators,” according to declassified documents. Privacy advocates are concerned that the Trump administration will continue to use Section 702’s authority to spy on American citizens. Two people familiar with the White House’s ongoing conversations over FISA reauthorization told Politico that Stephen Miller, the influential White House adviser and architect of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, sees Section 702 as critical to homeland security efforts.
Trump has also claimed FISA is essential for the ongoing war in Iran. FISA “is extremely important to our Military,” Trump said on Truth Social on March 25th. “I have spoken to many Generals about this, and they consider it vital. Not one said, even tacitly, that they can do without it — especially right now with our brilliant Military Operation in Iran.” The White House has reportedly called in members of the Freedom Caucus, as well as other skeptical Republicans, for briefings on the bill.
But libertarian-leaning Republicans, especially those in the Freedom Caucus, have concerns about Fourth Amendment violations under Section 702. On the FISA front, these Republicans’ loyalty to Trump is outweighed by their commitment to civil liberties. Right now, it doesn’t seem like Johnson, who is pushing for a clean extension, has enough Republican votes to get a FISA reauthorization without Democratic support. Some Democrats have long-standing objections to the surveillance authority, while others are wary of extending Trump and Miller’s access to Americans’ communications.
Among the latter is Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), who voted to reauthorize Section 702 in 2024 and now opposes extending the program as is. “The safeguards put in place in 2024 have been badly eroded by the Trump Administration,” Raskin wrote in a letter to his colleagues. “The ‘clean’ extension favored by President Trump and Stephen Miller leaves the Trump Administration in charge of policing its own abuses of this authority — and what could go wrong with that?”
With Trump at the helm, some Republicans who opposed the 2024 reauthorization may support a clean extension. But the White House needs Democrats to come on board.
“Every path for Speaker Johnson right now depends on Jim Himes delivering Democrats, which means getting Democrats to back, literally, Stephen Miller’s personal surveillance agenda,” Sean Vitka, the executive director of Demand Progress, told The Verge. Himes, a Connecticut Democrat who serves as the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, is urging Democrats to support a clean extension.
In March, Demand Progress and more than 90 civil rights and progressive organizations sent a letter to Democratic leaders urging them to reform Section 702.
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