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Tags: fisa | renewal | spying | durham | investigation | fbi

FISA Due for Renewal, but Prospects Taking a Hit

By    |   Tuesday, 23 May 2023 02:13 PM EDT

The secret court used to generate warrants to spy on individuals is due for renewal, but the Durham report and other government weaponization investigation findings have damaged the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act's reputation.

Section 702 of FISA permits the National Security Agency to spy on suspected terrorists or potential spy activity on U.S. telecommunications, phone and Internet, but the FBI tool has been picking up Americans, too, including more than 278,000 FBI violations in 2020 and early 2021, The Wall Street Journal reported.

"Egregious FISA abuses by the FBI underscore the need for Congress to reform 702 to better protect the civil liberties of Americans," Rep. Darin LaHood, R-Ill., a member of the House Intelligence Committee, tweeted last week. "Our @HouseIntel 702 Working Group will continue to work towards reform that ensures these types of abuses never happen again."

Reform is now likely, even if renewal might still have strong bipartisan support, according to the Journal.

"Without significant changes to the law to prevent this abuse, I will oppose the reauthorization of this authority," Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., House Judiciary Committee ranking member, said last week.

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, admitted the disclosures of new FISA abuses in searching Americans is concerning.

"Yet again, the public is learning about shocking abuses of FISA Section 702, in particular the FBI's warrantless searches through 702 data for information on Americans," Wyden wrote in a statement last week. "These abuses have been going on for years and despite recent changes in FBI practices, these systematic violations of Americans' privacy require congressional action. If Section 702 is to be reauthorized, there must be statutory reforms to ensure that the checks and balances are in place to put an end to these abuses."

Wyden added a call for transparency from the Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines.

"I will continue to urge the DNI to inform the public about how the government and the FISA Court are interpreting the law," Wyden's statement continued. "There is important, secret information about how the government has interpreted Section 702 that Congress and the American people need to see before the law is renewed."

Eric Mack

Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.

© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.


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The secret court used to generate warrants to spy on individuals is due for renewal, but the Durham report and other government weaponization investigation findings have damaged the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act's reputation.
fisa, renewal, spying, durham, investigation, fbi
364
2023-13-23
Tuesday, 23 May 2023 02:13 PM
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