Really disappointed in the FISA bill that’s being rushed to a House vote today. At this point, we’d be better off with a SHORT-term extension of the expiring FISA authorities (plus a few basic reforms that everyone can agree on), to allow time to produce a better bill. 1/14
A quick recap: there are three FISA authorities that are scheduled to expire at the end of this week. And for the first time since the Snowden revelations, there’s a real chance to pass meaningful reform when reauthorizing them. 2/14
That’s because there have been several FISA-related scandals in the last couple of years, culminating with the DOJ Inspector General’s report finding that the govt’s applications to conduct surveillance of Carter Page under FISA Title I were full of errors and omissions. 3/14
For the first time, conservative lawmakers who previously resisted adding any reforms to FISA are pushing to add civil liberties protections. Their “asks” are different than the “asks” of progressive members, but the opportunity is there to make common cause. 4/14
But the bill that @HouseJudiciary released in February didn’t go nearly far enough. It ended the ineffective, privacy-violating “call detail records program”—but that’s low-hanging fruit. The NSA doesn’t even use that program anymore, and everyone agrees it needs to go. 5/14
The additional reforms contained in the bill were not very ambitious. Most important, the bill didn’t include any provision to stop “bulky” collection of business records—i.e., collection that sweeps in large amounts of information about people other than the actual target. 6/14
It also didn’t limit long-term retention of these records. It didn’t specify what types of records should require a warrant rather than being available under a mere relevance standard. It didn’t prohibit investigations based substantially on 1st Amendment-protected activity. 7/14
More on what was missing from the HJC’s bill from February: justsecurity.org/68821/congress… 8/14
.@HouseJudiciary went back to the drafting table… but instead of adding the reforms civil liberties advocates most wanted, it added a series of “Carter Page” fixes designed to appeal to conservative lawmakers. 9/14
Don’t get me wrong: FISA Title I could use reforms. But criminalizing the disclosure of FISA applications (which raises major First Amendment concerns) and increasing criminal penalties for misrepresentations to the FISA Court are not the answer. 10/14
The new bill does include watered-down versions of some of the changes progressive members had asked for. But it also includes some steps backward from the previous HJC bill – such as allowing the govt to avoid certain requirements by claiming “national security.” 11/14
All in all, the bill is no better than HJC’s first attempt. It’s a huge waste of an opportunity to implement real FISA reform. It’s also being rammed through the House without a markup and without the opportunity to amend. 12/14
To be clear, the bill is better than a straight long-term reauthorization. But that’s not the only alternative here. For instance, @SenatorLeahy has introduced a bill to extend the authorities for 90 days, with a few targeted reforms that could go into effect right away. 13/14
FISA is too important, and its impact on Americans’ privacy rights too significant, to bypass regular procedure and rush through a weak reform bill. Civil liberties shouldn’t be held hostage to deadlines. Try again, @HouseJudiciary! 14/14
