A key provision of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is set to expire Friday unless it is reauthorized by Congress. Section 702 allows for the warrantless surveillance of foreign nationals believed to be outside of the U.S., yet, in practice, it also sweeps up and stores vast amounts of data from people inside the country, including their emails, texts and cellphone data. The FISA provision was enacted in 2008 to legalize George W. Bush’s warrantless wiretapping program that was developed after 9/11.
A bipartisan group of senators is opposing the reauthorization of Section 702 due to President Trump’s naming of MAGA loyalist Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence, to replace Tulsi Gabbard, who announced her resignation in May. Pulte has no known background in intelligence. He currently serves as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, where he has used his position to carry out Trump’s campaign of retribution against his political enemies.
“It took this nomination of a completely unqualified guy to get enough members of Congress to really stop [Section 702],” says Cindy Cohn, executive director of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. “It’s time to take a look and listen hard about the privacy protections that are needed, at a minimum, for this program to go forward.” Cohn notes that the “massive national security surveillance state that was built after 9/11 has always been a threat to freedom.”
“People are really, really afraid … that ICE will go and raid communities where people are watching and gathering together” to watch the FIFA World Cup, says Nelini Stamp. She is an organizer with the Our Copa campaign, a grassroots initiative that aims to protect immigrant fans, center the sport’s working-class roots, and host accessible local watch parties during the World Cup. “We will keep each other safe as much as possible during these games,” says Stamp.
Communities across the state are demanding to know how proposed data centers would affect their electric and water bills, landscapes and quality of life.
A pair of lawmakers worry the Trump administration is going easy on foreign companies potentially involved in dumping Chinese and Russian goods in the US.