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A key surveillance program expired early Saturday morning, marking the first meaningful lapse since the law was created more than 15 years ago.Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) allows U.S. intelligence agencies to collect communications from foreign targets abroad without a warrant, though critics say exchanges with American citizens are often swept up in the process. It lapsed because most Democrats and some Republicans in Congress refused to support an extension. The law is seen as vital in preventing terrorist attacks and drug smuggling, among other crimes. GOP supporters warned that its expiration would put the safety of Americans at risk. Republican Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, warned the Trump administration to prepare “for a potential significant gap in foreign intelligence collection.”Patrick Eddington, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute and former military imagery analyst at the CIA, said intelligence gathering won’t immediately stop because a court order in March certified the government’s surveillance powers for another year. “When you hear folks say ‘we’re going to go dark’ and things like that, that’s just simply false. That’s not the case,” Eddington said. “Is there a nonzero chance that something bad could happen with a 702 lapse? Sure.” Eddington said the question is whether telecommunications companies will continue to comply without lawmakers’ stamp of approval. “My guess is that their general counsels are going to come back and say unequivocally yes,” Eddington said. Many Democrats refused to extend the program after President Donald Trump appointed Bill Pulte, who has no national security experience, to temporarily oversee 18 intelligence agencies. Pulte has helped facilitate mortgage fraud investigations into the president’s perceived political enemies in his current role, leading the Federal Housing Finance Agency. On Thursday, Trump nominated Jay Clayton, currently the U.S. attorney in Manhattan, as his permanent pick for Director of National Intelligence. Clayton has received a comparably warm reception on Capitol Hill so far. Connecticut Rep. Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, praised his “temperament and deep commitment to public service,” and suggested that much of the current impasse could have been avoided if the president had made this announcement sooner. Clayton still needs to win Senate approval, but the timeline remains uncertain. His confirmation hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, two days before Pulte was set to take over as DNI. Tulsi Gabbard is resigning from the role, citing her husband’s cancer diagnosis.
A key surveillance program expired early Saturday morning, marking the first meaningful lapse since the law was created more than 15 years ago.
Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) allows U.S. intelligence agencies to collect communications from foreign targets abroad without a warrant, though critics say exchanges with American citizens are often swept up in the process.
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It lapsed because most Democrats and some Republicans in Congress refused to support an extension. The law is seen as vital in preventing terrorist attacks and drug smuggling, among other crimes. GOP supporters warned that its expiration would put the safety of Americans at risk.
Republican Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, warned the Trump administration to prepare “for a potential significant gap in foreign intelligence collection.”
Patrick Eddington, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute and former military imagery analyst at the CIA, said intelligence gathering won’t immediately stop because a court order in March certified the government’s surveillance powers for another year.
“When you hear folks say ‘we’re going to go dark’ and things like that, that’s just simply false. That’s not the case,” Eddington said. “Is there a nonzero chance that something bad could happen with a 702 lapse? Sure.”
Eddington said the question is whether telecommunications companies will continue to comply without lawmakers’ stamp of approval.
“My guess is that their general counsels are going to come back and say unequivocally yes,” Eddington said.
Many Democrats refused to extend the program after President Donald Trump appointed Bill Pulte, who has no national security experience, to temporarily oversee 18 intelligence agencies. Pulte has helped facilitate mortgage fraud investigations into the president’s perceived political enemies in his current role, leading the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
On Thursday, Trump nominated Jay Clayton, currently the U.S. attorney in Manhattan, as his permanent pick for Director of National Intelligence.
Clayton has received a comparably warm reception on Capitol Hill so far.
Connecticut Rep. Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, praised his “temperament and deep commitment to public service,” and suggested that much of the current impasse could have been avoided if the president had made this announcement sooner.
Clayton still needs to win Senate approval, but the timeline remains uncertain. His confirmation hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, two days before Pulte was set to take over as DNI. Tulsi Gabbard is resigning from the role, citing her husband’s cancer diagnosis.
