The Biden administration urged Congress on Tuesday to renew a surveillance program under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) that has been seen as vital in protecting national security. The program, which is set to expire at year’s end unless Congress agrees to renew it, allows American spy agencies to collect huge swaths of foreign communications without a warrant. However, it has also drawn scrutiny from civil liberties advocates because it results in the incidental collection from Americans when those Americans are in contact with the foreign surveillance targets.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a longtime Senate Intelligence Committee member, has long pressed U.S. spy agencies on their compliance with civil liberties. He does not accept the claim that Americans’ privacy is adequately protected under the current 702 program and has spoken with administration officials about disclosing how often officials search “incidental collection” for information about Americans.
This year’s fight for renewal is again unfolding in a polarized political climate. Republicans still angry over FBI errors during the investigation into links between Russia and Trump’s 2016 Republican presidential campaign say they’re skeptical of the government’s need for broad spy powers and maintain the authorities are ripe for abuse and overreach.
The intelligence community has never released a precise figure on how many searches are conducted of its bulk data for information on Americans. In its most recent transparency report, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said the FBI had conducted “fewer than 3,394,053” searches during 2021.
Biden administration officials held a background briefing for reporters and released a statement from national security adviser Jake Sullivan and a letter to lawmakers from Attorney General Merrick Garland and the national intelligence director, Avril Haines. Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen also delivered the same message in a speech at the Brookings Institution think tank, calling for Congress to act with urgency in renewing the program.
In order to persuade Congress to renew the program, the Biden administration is aiming to address potential privacy concerns. At the same time, officials have also argued that the program in recent years has yielded valuable insight into ransomware attacks on critical infrastructure, helped disrupt potential acts of terror and efforts to recruit spies, and contributed to the killing of al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri in a drone strike last August.
Key Points:
• The Biden administration is urging Congress to renew a surveillance program under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) that is set to expire at the end of the year
• The program allows American spy agencies to collect huge swaths of foreign communications without a warrant, but it has also drawn scrutiny from civil liberties advocates
• This year’s fight for renewal is unfolding in a polarized political climate, with Republicans skeptical of the government’s need for broad spy powers
• The intelligence community has never released a precise figure on how many searches are conducted of its bulk data for information on Americans
• The Biden administration is aiming to address potential privacy concerns and has argued that the program has been useful in protecting national security