President Donald Trump encouraged House Republicans to vote against a surveillance bill that would allow law enforcement to access the Internet browsing history of United States citizens.
Trump tweeted, referring to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act:
"I hope all Republican House Members vote NO on FISA until such time as our Country is able to determine how and why the greatest political, criminal, and subversive scandal in USA history took place!"
His tweet followed months of the uncertainty of whether he would support the measure. It also comes a day before the House is expected to vote on the bill.
House leaders agreed to consider an amendment that would constrict the FBI's ability to access citizen's web browsing history.
The Senate approved legislation in a bipartisan vote earlier this month reauthorizing three expired surveillance programs under the USA Freedom Act, a 2015 intelligence reform law.
The first version of the bill passed in the House in March with a 278 to 136 vote. It received included tweaks to the FISA court that were favored by Attorney General Bill Barr.
The Senate version contained new legal protections for certain FISA warrant applications. The amended bill passed by a 80-16 vote, pushing it back to the House for another vote.
The Justice Department protested the changes because they would "unacceptably degrade" the U.S. government's surveillance capabilities.
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