House GOP leadership is setting up another clash with its right wing by pushing to renew a government surveillance program before it expires — without requiring warrants to spy on Americans.
GOP leaders dropped the latest iteration of legislation to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act on Thursday. Under the plan, FISA, which allows warrantless wiretapping of noncitizens, would be extended for three years, with new oversight guardrails and penalties for abusing the spy tool.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is hoping to vote next week on extending the program, which would lapse on April 30. The House Rules Committee is set to debate and vote on the three-year reauthorization on Monday.
The House passed a short-term extension of the surveillance program last week after several GOP members voted to sink a late-night deal that would have allowed it to continue until 2031.
Both a five-year extension and a procedural rule vote for a “clean” 18-month extension failed after GOP hardliners, who have demanded reforms to the program, such as adding a warrant requirement, voted against the measures.
Conservative holdouts have also been pushing for a ban on a central bank digital currency, which is not in the three-year extension.
Without the warrant requirement, it is likely that Johnson will face conservative opposition to the extension on the House floor. Twelve Republicans voted against the five-year extension last week, with 20 voting against the “clean” 18-month reauthorization.
THE WEEKSLONG FISA BATTLE THAT ENDED IN AN OVERNIGHT DEFEAT FOR MIKE JOHNSON
A spokesperson for the House Freedom Caucus, which has several members demanding warrant requirements be included, told the Washington Examiner that the deal has not been signed off on by conservative hardliners yet.
Still, Johnson may be able to enjoy some support from Democrats on the procedural rule vote, which is usually a party-line test of unity, as three Democrats supported the five-year extension last week.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) told reporters that he and Johnson spoke on Wednesday about FISA, and the “need to find common ground.”