HURDLE AFTER HURDLE

House Passes Controversial Spying Law Trump Wanted to ‘Kill’

Speaker Mike Johnson cut the FISA extension down from 5 years to two after Trump told Republicans to vote it down.

The House on Friday narrowly passed a two-year extension of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which allows the warrantless surveillance of foreigners located abroad, after a dramatic revolt led by 19 hard-line Republicans. The bill’s passage was largely bipartisan, with 147 Democrats joining 126 Republicans to pass it. Proponents of the bill say it’s essential to fighting terrorism, while opponents argue it threatens privacy rights. Speaker Mike Johnson narrowed the length of the extension from five years down to two, which curtailed opposition from hard-right members of the GOP after Donald Trump told them to “kill it” in a Truth Social rant claiming he was a victim of it. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) gloated that the two-year extension gives Trump the chance to shoot down a further reauthorization of it if he wins the presidency in 2024. The bill now heads to the Senate just days ahead of the law’s planned April 19 expiration.