GOP Rebels Strike Again, Overturning FISA Rule Post Trump's Influence

House conservatives rebelled against GOP leadership and successfully blocked a FISA rule vote on Wednesday. This is another setback for Speaker Mike Johnson, especially after former President Donald Trump encouraged Republicans to defeat the bill.

Trump had specifically asked House Republicans to oppose the reauthorization bill before the important procedural vote on Wednesday. This added more challenges for GOP leaders who were already facing difficulties in gaining support for the legislation. Despite the obstacles, they were determined to push forward and move the bill ahead.

Trump took to his social media platform Truth Social and declared, "KILL FISA."

This is the fourth time during Johnson's time in office that the House has rejected a rule vote, causing significant embarrassment for leadership.

House Republicans have been fiercely divided over how to handle the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act reauthorization. Pressure is on Johnson to navigate through the conflicting factions within his conference. With a vote on his ouster looming, the Louisiana Republican's every move is under intense scrutiny. The speaker finds himself at odds with his right flank over the surveillance law. The tally was 193 to 228, with 19 Republicans breaking ranks with House GOP leadership. They voted with Democrats to sink the procedural vote and take down a rule governing debate on the reauthorization bill and several other bills.

Johnson had mentioned earlier that the House would be discussing a FISA reauthorization bill this week. The bill, known as the Reforming Intelligence and Securing America Act, seeks to extend Section 702 of FISA for five years and includes various reforms.

However, there seems to be trouble brewing for GOP leaders as Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz has already announced that he will vote against the procedural vote scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.

Florida GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna responded to Trump's Truth Social post by stating, "we are killing FISA." Tennessee GOP Rep. Tim Burchett also mentioned that he will be voting against the rule. When informed that this would essentially kill it, he simply replied, "good."

In a separate development, Trump and Johnson are organizing a joint news conference to discuss "election integrity" at Trump's Mar-a-Lago home in Florida. This information was shared by three sources with CNN.

The House Republican leader is facing a challenge to his speakership from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has filed a motion to vacate. However, Greene has not pushed for a floor vote on the resolution yet, keeping the threat on hold for the time being.

Sources close to Johnson and Trump revealed that allies of the speaker have requested the former president to show public support for Johnson, or simply refrain from getting involved in the situation altogether.

Johnson informed members during a closed-door conference meeting on Wednesday morning that he had a conversation with Trump the previous night. However, members were told that FISA was not discussed during their conversation.

The authority for Section 702 was extended until April 19 as part of the National Defense Authorization Act.

The current law permits the US intelligence community to gather communication records of foreign individuals located outside the country. However, it also grants the FBI the authority to scrutinize this data for details pertaining to American citizens, a practice criticized as a "backdoor" search.

Although there are internal regulations in place to safeguard the privacy and civil liberties of US individuals, critics argue that there are loopholes that enable the FBI to conduct searches for information on Americans within the collected data without sufficient justification.

The politics surrounding the law have brought together unlikely allies for years. Conservative Republicans and progressive Democrats have worked together to advocate for changes to the authority. On the other hand, security-focused Democrats and Republicans have resisted imposing significant new limitations.

A key issue that has caused disagreement is whether the FBI should have to get a warrant before searching the database for details about American citizens.

House Republicans faced difficulties navigating the issue of surveillance law, leading leadership to pull two bills from the floor in December due to internal divisions. In February, the speaker's spokesperson mentioned that FISA reform would be considered at a later date to allow more time for consensus on the way forward.

Conservative Republicans have targeted the authority as a high-profile political issue, especially after it was revealed that a different section of FISA was improperly used to surveil Carter Page, an aide to the Trump 2016 campaign.

Trump took to Truth Social to call for the end of FISA, claiming it was unlawfully used against him and others, stating, "THEY SPIED ON MY CAMPAIGN!!!"

In a letter to colleagues, Johnson emphasized the importance of FISA and Section 702 in intercepting communications of foreign threats, protecting the country, and saving American lives. He urged for the tool to be maintained while preventing any future abuses.

The speaker mentioned that the upcoming bill in the House will have changes to control the FBI, make the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) more accountable, punish misconduct, and bring more transparency to the FISA process so we can quickly identify any possible abuses.

CNN’s Lauren Fox helped with this information.

Editor's P/S:

The article highlights the ongoing battle within the GOP over the reauthorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). Conservative Republicans, emboldened by former President Trump's opposition to the bill, have successfully blocked its passage, leaving Speaker Mike Johnson facing significant challenges. The division within the party is evident, with 19 Republicans breaking ranks to vote against the procedural rule. This move is a setback for Johnson, who is already facing a leadership challenge from Marjorie Taylor Greene.

The conflict surrounding FISA stems from concerns about the potential for abuse by the FBI in collecting data on American citizens. Conservative Republicans and progressive Democrats have joined forces to advocate for changes to the law, while security-focused Democrats and Republicans have resisted significant limitations. The debate has been further fueled by allegations that FISA was misused to surveil Trump campaign associates. The upcoming bill in the House aims to address these concerns by implementing reforms to control the FBI, increase accountability, and enhance transparency. However, the deep divisions within the GOP make it uncertain whether a compromise can be reached that satisfies all factions.