{"id":7219,"date":"2026-04-18T16:09:12","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T21:09:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/?p=7219"},"modified":"2026-04-18T16:09:13","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T21:09:13","slug":"congress-kicks-the-can-on-surveillance-while-the-constitution-waits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/?p=7219","title":{"rendered":"Congress Kicks the Can on Surveillance While the Constitution Waits"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

NP Editor: <\/strong> It is not the job of the government to spy on its citizens. Many of us believe that the government should be afraid of its citizens because citizens can vote to throw them out. But information is power, complete information is ultimate power, and in the hands of government this leads to tyranny.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

———<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Congress has once again chosen delay over decision. In the early hours of the morning, after failing to pass a long-term renewal of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, lawmakers voted to extend the controversial surveillance authority for just two weeks, pushing the deadline to April 30.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This short-term extension is not a solution. It is an admission of failure. Lawmakers could not agree on how to fix a deeply flawed system, so instead they preserved it, temporarily, and walked away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What FISA Was Meant to Do<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

FISA was originally passed in 1978 in the aftermath of Watergate to bring oversight to government surveillance. It created a special court to review requests for surveillance tied to foreign intelligence, an attempt to balance national security with constitutional protections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the attacks of September 11, 2001, the law expanded dramatically. Section 702, added in 2008, gave intelligence agencies sweeping authority to monitor foreign targets abroad using American communication systems. The goal was straightforward. Identify terrorists, disrupt plots, and connect foreign threats to activity inside the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By many accounts, it has done that. The law has been credited with helping \u201cthwart terrorist plots, disrupt drug trafficking and other acts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But that is only half the story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How It Became a Tool for Domestic Surveillance<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The central problem with Section 702 is not what it was designed to do. It is what it allows in practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the government theoretically cannot directly target Americans, it can collect vast amounts of data. In doing so, it inevitably sweeps up communications involving American citizens. Emails, texts, phone calls. Once that data is collected, agencies like the FBI can search through it, and often they do so without a warrant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Critics across the political spectrum have pointed to this \u201cbackdoor search\u201d loophole as a direct violation of the Fourth Amendment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Senators Mike Lee and Dick Durbin wrote in The New York Times:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\u201cThe problem is that it has also allowed agencies like the F.B.I. and the National Security Agency to regularly gather and search through the private communications of American citizens without a warrant. That is a clear violation of rights protected by the Constitution.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

This is not theoretical. It has already happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Government disclosures have shown that FISA data has been used to surveil protesters, political donors, journalists, and even members of Congress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is not foreign intelligence. That is domestic surveillance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Congress Can\u2019t Agree<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The failure to pass a long-term extension reflects a rare moment of bipartisan discomfort. Some lawmakers argue that the program is essential for national security. Others believe it has strayed far beyond its intended purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even proposed reforms have not been enough. A recent compromise included a limited warrant requirement, but critics said it only applied to data collection, not the later searches of Americans\u2019 communications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As one lawmaker put it, the proposal was seen by some as a \u201cmassive reform\u201d and by others as doing \u201cnothing of substance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both sides cannot be right. But the confusion itself reveals the deeper issue. Congress does not fully understand or control the system it is trying to regulate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Reform Might Look Like<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lee and Durbin have proposed a path forward in what they call the SAFE Act. Their approach does not eliminate Section 702. Instead, it attempts to bring it back within constitutional bounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their proposal would require court approval before the government can access the contents of Americans\u2019 communications. It would also close another loophole, where agencies purchase sensitive data from private brokers to avoid warrant requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They argue for balance, not abandonment:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\u201cWe must use this extra time to do so rather than ramming through yet another reauthorization of Section 702 with minimal reforms, sidelining Americans\u2019 constitutional rights in the process.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

That is a reasonable position. But will be the reality? These are politicians after all…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why It Is Time to End It<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The truth is simpler and more uncomfortable. A law that enables warrantless searches of Americans\u2019 communications is fundamentally incompatible with the Constitution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We understand why FISA was expanded. The country had just experienced one of the worst attacks in its history. The urgency was real. The fear was real. The desire to prevent another tragedy was overwhelming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But laws passed in moments of crisis are rarely good laws in the long run.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Benjamin Franklin warned about this long ago:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\u201cThose who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

That warning applies directly today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For years, Congress has renewed Section 702 with only minor adjustments, treating it as too important to fail. But importance does not excuse illegality. Security does not justify abandoning the Fourth Amendment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We already have a constitutional system. It requires warrants. It requires oversight. It requires that the government justify its intrusion into private lives before it happens, not after.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Section 702 bypasses that system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two-week extension is not just a delay. It is an opportunity. Congress can continue patching a broken law, or it can take the harder step and end it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is time to stop allowing the government to spy on its own citizens without judicial warrants. It is time to align our security with the Constitution, not in opposition to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it is time to admit that this law, whatever its original intent, has outlived its legitimacy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NP Editor: It is not the job of the government to spy on its citizens. Many of us believe that the government should be afraid of its citizens because citizens can vote to throw them out. But information is power, complete information is ultimate power, and in the hands of government this leads to tyranny. ——— Congress has once again chosen delay over decision. In the early hours of the morning, after failing to pass a long-term renewal of Section […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":7220,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,18,21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7219","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-individual-liberty","category-politics","category-threat-to-america"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/fisasdthg.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7219","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7219"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7219\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7221,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7219\/revisions\/7221"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7220"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7219"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7219"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7219"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}