WASHINGTON \u2014 A powerful surveillance tool backed by national security hawks faces a risk of expiring this week after President Donald Trump moved to put it in the hands of an ally without a national security background.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump tapped housing official Bill Pulte last week to replace Tulsi Gabbard on an acting basis as director of national intelligence. Pulte is known for pushing criminal investigations into Trump\u2019s adversaries for mortgage fraud, which Democrats and the targets of those probes say are selective and politically motivated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The DNI oversees Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, which gives the administration powers to spy on foreign nationals living abroad without obtaining warrants. The program has long faced criticism from privacy hawks on the left and the right who say that it enables the government to sweep up data on Americans and that it is ripe for abuse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The push to renew Section 702 was already hitting roadblocks and divisions. Democrats and some Republicans want changes to the program to protect Americans\u2019 privacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But the elevation of Pulte has turned it into a deal-breaker for Democrats, who say they won\u2019t vote to reauthorize the program ahead of its expiration deadline Friday. The Trump administration and Republicans in Congress argue Section 702 is a national security necessity, especially, as Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., argued Tuesday, ahead of large events like the World Cup and celebrations for America\u2019s 250th anniversary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said there\u2019s no scenario in which he\u2019d support an extension with Pulte in charge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe negotiations prior to Trump\u2019s announcement with respect to Bill Pulte were already in a very sensitive place,\u201d Jeffries told reporters Monday. \u201cAnd then Donald Trump, as he often does, tosses a hand grenade into those sensitive negotiations by elevating Bill Pulte as the director of national intelligence.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump\u2019s announcement last week blindsided Republican leaders, who weren\u2019t consulted about the Pulte pick and fretted that the timing would complicate their ability to secure the votes to extend Section 702, according to a Republican aide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Any bill to renew Section 702 needs 60 votes in the Senate, where Republicans control 53 seats. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Trump\u2019s tapping Pulte for DNI makes it \u201cmuch harder\u201d to reach a bipartisan agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said the Pulte announcement \u201creally complicated our ability to move forward on FISA.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thune said he is \u201cencouraging\u201d Trump to nominate a permanent new DNI for Senate confirmation to unlock Democratic votes. Beyond that, he punted to the White House on how to placate Democratic demands and get the votes for FISA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a conversation that\u2019s happening between Senate Democrats and the White House,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said that he participated in a \u201cvery productive\u201d meeting about FISA with Trump at the White House on Tuesday and that Congress can\u2019t let Section 702 \u201cgo dark.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He declined to say whether Trump might dump Pulte to secure the votes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump didn\u2019t allude to any of the controversy in a Truth Social post Tuesday evening, saying that Pulte will take over as acting DNI on June 19 and that he \u201cwill remain as Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, and Chairman of Fannie Mae\/Freddie Mac.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even some Republicans say Pulte isn\u2019t qualified to be DNI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m still seeking any evidence of qualifications,\u201d said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, who was defeated in his primary re-election race by a Trump-backed candidate. \u201cAnd Democrats are not going to vote to pass 702 until he\u2019s withdrawn, and we need that done. That\u2019s 60% of the President\u2019s Daily Brief is materials generated by FISA 702. So the stalemate needs to be broken.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., who also lost to a Trump-backed primary challenger, said: \u201cThere\u2019s a lot to be concerned about there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meanwhile, some Republicans say it\u2019s not a big deal if FISA Section 702 authority expires on schedule Friday, arguing that a temporary lapse wouldn\u2019t harm national security.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rep. Keith Self, R-Texas, called it \u201chysteria\u201d Tuesday on X and said proponents of the program should accept \u201creasonable reforms,\u201d like a warrant requirement to collect data about Americans, if they want the program renewed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Self noted that other FISA authorities remain, a point the libertarian Cato Institute also made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFISA isn\u2019t going dark. We have the law. We have precedent from 2008. Don\u2019t fall for the scare tactics,\u201d Self said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some Democrats say it\u2019s not just about Pulte \u2014 and that Trump\u2019s instinct to install him as acting DNI is reason enough to warrant opposition to renewing the warrantless surveillance power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., a member of House Democratic leadership, said he\u2019s \u201ca hard NO on FISA Section 702 reauthorization.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhether or not the totally unqualified and corrupt Bill Pulte gets confirmed, trump\u2019s nomination of Pulte has already shown trump would have no problem with weaponizing intelligence against Americans he doesn\u2019t like,\u201d Lieu wrote on X.<\/p>\n\n\n\n