Mike Johnson Suffers Embarrassing Defeat Over Government Spying Bill Trump Wanted to Kill

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson saw his party revolt over another vote on a key rule as the House voted on reforms to the U.S. domestic surveillance system (FISA).

A rebellion led by members of the House Freedom Caucus derailed a vote Wednesday to advance the bill, angered that the proposed reforms would not require FBI agents to obtain a warrant. a judge to access Americans’ communications. Disgruntled members gathered on the House steps after the rules vote failed and accused Mr Johnson of putting his thumb on the scale against an amendment that would have made this key change to the legislation.

Donald Trump, whose 2016 presidential campaign was monitored by the FBI after being accused of communication or potential collusion with Russia, launched a major push for tougher law reforms and allegedly contributed to the failure of the vote. .

“KILL FISA, IT WAS ILLEGALLY USED AGAINST ME AND MANY OTHERS. THEY SPY ON MY CAMPAIGN!!!” he wrote on Truth Social earlier Wednesday.

President Johnson and his allies had warned at Wednesday’s GOP conference that passage of a clean bill to renew the program was the likely result of today’s failed vote.

“We are going to regroup and formulate another plan,” the speaker told reporters after the vote failed.

He added: “We cannot allow this important provision to expire. »

But members of the Freedom Caucus who spoke to reporters after the failed vote pointed the finger at Mr. Johnson for failing to include them.

“The Speaker of the House put his finger on the scale against the amendment, and that’s pretty much the story,” Rep. Chip Roy of Texas said in a group.

“We should introduce the right bill. We can do it tomorrow.

Scott Perry of Pennsylvania also criticized the speaker: “It’s the same old establishment trading tactics we used in the study.” John Boehner then under Paul Ryan. We’re done with that.

Others who spoke after the vote, like Florida Rep. Byron Donalds, called Wednesday’s setback political “sausage making” and not a sign of larger dysfunction in the House. Mr. Donalds was one of 19 Republicans who voted against the rule to advance the legislation.

He added his own concerns about FISA: “The FBI violated the law nearly 300,000 times during the FISA process. This needs to be reformed. And this is not a Republican issue, but a Democratic one, which is fundamental to the Constitution of the United States and to the civil liberties of the American people.”

None of the assembled conservatives were willing to address the possibility of hanging on to a motion to vacate the presidency filed by Marjorie Taylor Greene at the request of reporters. Greene’s resolution has yet to find a single Republican ally, while some Democrats have signaled they may vote against it.

“I’m not going to go down that path at the moment,” Mr. Roy said.

Republicans were scheduled to reconvene this afternoon to chart a path forward on the FISA reauthorization bill. Ms. Greene and Mr. Johnson also met, their first face-to-face since the Georgia representative filed his annulment request, but their disagreement was not resolved.

“We did not leave with an agreement. I explained that to him, and he acknowledged that as a Republican member of the House, I have pretty much the best idea of ​​what the base feels and what Republican voters want,” he said. she declared during a rally.

Although clear policy differences are present within the GOP conference and always have been, signs of a greater inability to pass legislation are evident within the chamber. Votes on funding continue to come to the House with the support of the Democratic minority, often against the wishes of conservatives who constantly push for deeper spending cuts or other policy items, while the majority struggles to win votes on its own priorities. At the same time, a weariness is evident in the House as conservatives back away from threats to replace Mr. Johnson with another Republican.

Civil liberties advocates have long warned that the FISA system poses a danger to Americans whose communications are caught under foreign surveillance. Under current law, a warrant is not required to view the communications of foreign persons, but in many cases the collection of this data includes communications with Americans.

If the law expires on April 19 without new authorization from Congress, the FBI will lose legal authority to conduct warrantless surveillance of people living abroad. The agency also came out against requiring a warrant to access communications with Americans, saying delays would undermine the law’s effectiveness.

“While it is imperative to ensure that this critical authority of 702 does not disappear, we must also not undermine the effectiveness of this essential tool by requiring a mandate or similar restriction, crippling our ability to cope to rapidly evolving threats,” the FBI said. Director Christopher Wray Tuesday.