Himes is Leading the Charge to Whip Support for Trump & Stephen Miller’s ‘Clean’ Reauthorization of Government Spying Powers, Vote Expected Wednesday
BRIDGEPORT, CT — On Sunday morning, Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT) woke up to an ad in his local newspaper calling him out for trying to deliver Democratic votes for Donald Trump and Stephen Miller’s surveillance agenda. On Wednesday, the House is expected to vote on whether to renew the government’s warrantless surveillance authority under Section 702 of the Foreign Services Intelligence Act (FISA). Both Trump and Miller are demanding that Congress renew this authority without any privacy reforms. Shockingly, Rep. Himes is trying to get Democrats to give them the “clean” renewal of FISA that they are asking for.
The print ad in the Connecticut Post was sponsored by Fight for the Future and Demand Progress Action, who are leading a coalition of progressive and civil rights groups demanding privacy protections for FISA.
The vote on the FISA renewal is expected to be close, with both conservative and progressive members of the House facing concerns from their base about government overreach and data privacy. Fight for the Future, Demand Progress Action and others are specifically calling on Congress to close the “data broker loophole,” which allows the CIA and other intelligence agencies to purchase the private data of American citizens from commercial brokers without going to the courts.
“Section 702 allows the government to collect communications between Americans and foreigners located abroad, which agents then search for information about Americans — without warrants. Meanwhile, ICE, and other federal agencies, are bypassing constitutional protections by directly buying sensitive data, including your location, from data brokers. Members of Congress have offered solutions to close these loopholes and protect us from increasingly dangerous mass surveillance. Will Congressman Himes continue to stand in the way?” asked the ad.
“We urge you to ensure any FISA reauthorization closes the so-called data broker loophole and stops the government from using taxpayer dollars to circumvent core Fourth Amendment rights,” said 100+ civil rights and progressive groups in a letter to congressional leadership. “If government agencies are allowed to use this loophole to supercharge AI-powered surveillance of Americans, this already-serious issue could prove catastrophic to the right to privacy in the United States, as well as other Constitutionally protected liberties that privacy protects”
Rep. Himes’s constituents have further engaged him and protested at his town halls, leading to him making demonstrably false claims.
As part of its pressure campaign, the coalition is also organizing a protest against Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY), a member of the Congressional Black Caucus. The coalition will also be organizing other grassroots activity throughout the week in the lead up to Wednesday’s vote.
A robust set of resources on the need for privacy reforms for FISA is available here, and additional background, context, polling, reform demands, resources and other information is available here.