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THE US ISN’T JUST REAUTHORIZING ITS SURVEILLANCE LAWS – IT’S
VASTLY EXPANDING THEM  
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Caitlin Vogus
April 16, 2024
The Guardian
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_ A little-known amendment to the reauthorized version of Fisa would
enlarge the government’s surveillance powers to a drastic, draconian
degree _

‘The last thing Americans need is a large expansion of government
surveillance.’, Photograph: Samuel Corum/EPA

 

The US House of Representatives agreed to reauthorize
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controversial spying law known as Section 702 of the Foreign
Intelligence Surveillance Act last Friday without any meaningful
reforms, dashing hopes that Congress might finally put a stop to
intelligence agencies’ warrantless surveillance of Americans’
emails, text messages and phone calls.

The vote not only reauthorized the act, though; it also vastly
expanded the surveillance law enforcement can conduct. In a move
that Senator Ron Wyden condemned
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“terrifying”, the House also doubled down on a surveillance
authority that has been used against American protesters, journalists
and political donors
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a chilling assault on free speech.

Section 702 in its current form allows the government to compel
communications giants like Google and Verizon to turn over
information. An amendment to the bill approved by the House vastly
increases the law’s scope. The Turner-Himes amendment – so named
for its champions Representatives Mike Turner and Jim Himes – would
permit federal law enforcement to also force “any other service
provider
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with access to communications equipment to hand over data. That means
anyone with access to a wifi router, server or even phone – anyone
from a landlord to a laundromat – could be required to help the
government spy.

The Senate is expected to vote on the House bill as soon as this week,
and if it passes there, Joe Biden is likely to sign it. All Americans
should be terrified by that prospect.

Section 702
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supposedly a foreign intelligence tool that allows the US government
to surveil the communications of non-US citizens abroad without a
warrant. But as many civil liberties groups
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like the FBI also use it as a warrantless spying tool against
Americans. The FBI abused its authority under the law no fewer than
300,000 times in 2020 and 2021, according to a ruling from a Fisa
court judge
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In arguing for the reauthorization of Section 702 late last year,
Turner, chair of the House intelligence committee, shockingly
suggested
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a closed-door briefing that the law could be used to spy on Americans
protesting against the war in Gaza.

It’s not supposed to be that way. In most cases, the fourth
amendment requires the government to have a court-approved warrant to
obtain an American’s communications. But intelligence agencies have
used Section 702 as a loophole that allows them to vacuum up and comb
through communications between an American and a foreigner who can be
targeted under the law – all without a warrant.

The House didn’t just fail to reform Section 702. It voted to grant
intelligence agencies expansive 
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powers
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The Turner-Himes amendment would allow them to deputize ordinary
Americans and businesses as government spies. When privacy advocates
raised alarms about the Stasi-like powers
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create, lawmakers like Himes
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without a substantive response. The proposed expansion deserves an
explanation. The US government has a long history of abusing its
existing surveillance powers
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It would be naive to think it wouldn’t abuse new ones.

While the Turner-Himes amendment lists some business types that are
excepted from the requirement to help spy – like dwellings and
restaurants – an almost limitless number of entities that provide
wifi or just have access to Americans’ devices could be roped into
the government’s surveillance operations. Using the wifi in your
dentist office, hiring a cleaner who has access to your laptop, or
even storing communications equipment in an office you rent could all
expose you to increased risk of surveillance.

The Turner-Himes amendment would also make it harder to push back on
abusive surveillance practices, including those targeting first
amendment rights. Take, for example, the surveillance of journalists.
Big tech companies may sometimes resist government orders to spy on
news outlets. They command armies of lawyers, receive Section 702
orders frequently, and have a commercial incentive to at least appear
to care about their customers’ privacy concerns. But what hope could
a news organization have that its cleaning crew, for instance, will
want to take on the federal government on its behalf?

The FBI’s abuses of Section 702 violate Americans’ privacy and
often threaten their first amendment rights. A declassified report
from 2023, for example, revealed that the FBI had used Section 702
to investigate Black Lives Matter protesters
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Section 702 has also been used to spy on American journalists
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weakening their first amendment right to report the news by
undermining their ability to speak with foreign sources confidentially
– something reporters must do frequently.

In response to these and other abuses, many reformers argue that
Section 702 should be reauthorized only with real reforms that would
rein in government spying, such as requiring the government to get a
warrant
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it can access Americans’ communications. Johnson himself initially
attempted to weaken Fisa’s surveillance provisions in an effort to
satisfy the hardline rightwingers in his caucus and Donald Trump. He
did not succeed. The House voted to reauthorize Section 702 without
adding a warrant requirement
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The fact that Section 702 has been used so often against the exercise
of first amendment rights – including those of journalists – makes
it both shocking and inexplicable that so many news outlets continue
to support it. The Wall Street Journal
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Post
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Tribune
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all published editorials in recent days cheering the demise of the
warrant requirement and urging Congress to reauthorize the law. But
the House vote wasn’t just a reauthorization. It was a drastic,
draconian expansion of the government’s surveillance powers.

Some of these editorials scoff at Trump’s recent nonsensical social
media post criticizing Section 702 and frame the anti-surveillance
crowd as a ragtag bunch of fringe rightwingers, ignoring that
lawmakers and civil liberties organizations across the political
spectrum opposed extending Fisa without reforming it. They also ignore
the real threats Section 702 poses to Americans’ privacy rights and
first amendment interests, especially if a future administration is
determined to surveil and chill its opponents.

Thankfully, it’s not too late for the Senate to prevent these future
abuses. In the face of the pervasive past misuse of Section 702, the
last thing Americans need is a large expansion of government
surveillance. The Senate should reject the House bill and refuse to
reauthorize Section 702 without a warrant requirement. Lawmakers must
demand reforms to put a stop to unjustified government spying on
Americans.

* Domestic Spying
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* Surveillance of Citizens by Government
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* First Amendment
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