Attorney General William Barr endorsed the bipartisan Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act reform bill being pushed by Republican and Democratic congressional leaders ahead of the expiration of key surveillance authorities this weekend.
“I have reviewed the House FISA bill and support its passage,” Barr said Wednesday. “The bill contains an array of new requirements and compliance provisions that will protect against abuse and misuse in the future while ensuring that this critical tool is available when appropriate to protect the safety of the American people.”
Barr said the bill contained provisions that he and FBI Director Christopher Wray put forward “to address past failures” in the wake of Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz’s scathing FISA abuse report. Barr said he and Wray “will promulgate additional, implementing rules that advance these reforms.”
“It is of the utmost important that the Department’s attorneys and investigators always work in a manner consistent with the highest professional standards, and this overall package will help ensure the integrity of the FISA process and protect against future abuses going forward,” the attorney general said.
The White House did not immediately respond to the Washington Examiner‘s question about whether President Trump himself supports the bill. The bill could be brought up for a vote in the Senate as early as Thursday.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the “strong, bipartisan” agreement “strikes the balance between protecting Americans’ security and their civil liberties” as she gave a “salute” to the leadership of House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler and House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff.
Pelosi emphasized the new law creates “new limitations” on surveillance authorities while “ensuring” the intelligence community and law enforcement have the “necessary tools” to do their jobs. She also said it would strengthen the “integrity” of FISA by “increasing transparency and accountability” in the process. The California Democrat also pointed to the “expanding involvement” of the court-appointed amicus curiae in FISA cases, a position that is supposed to provide impartial advice to the court, as well as “increasing the power” of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board.
On the Republican side, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy “applauded the bipartisan agreement” and stressed these reforms “will ensure that the intelligence community can keep our country safe without compromising Americans’ civil liberties.” He said House Republicans “have long insisted that the system needed reform” and said the agreement “finally shows Democrats agree.”
McCarthy pointed to the establishment of a compliance office at the FBI and said the new law “requires the Attorney General to approve FISA investigations of elected officials or federal candidates.” The California Republican claimed the bill strengthens congressional oversight while it “increases the punishment for unauthorized disclosure of FISA applications” and “authorizes an amicus to be appointed to political activity cases involving American citizens.”
FISA authorities, including roving wiretap powers, the business records provision, and the “lone wolf” amendment, will sunset on Sunday if not reauthorized.
At a private meeting with Senate Republicans two weeks ago, Barr advocated for a “clean” extension of soon-to-expire surveillance law provisions and time to implement his own internal reforms aimed at stopping surveillance abuses against American citizens.
“The attorney general just wanted to underscore the importance of these provisions that were enacted in the wake of the 9/11 attacks,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said at the time.
Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham said Barr “made a commitment to make sure that what happened in 2016 — that internally he’s going to clean up that mess.”
Trump and Barr met with Republican lawmakers again last week, which put the divide on the FISA matter on display.
Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky said the president did not agree with Barr’s desire for a “clean” reauthorization and “pushed back very vigorously” on an extension without comprehensive FISA reforms.
“It was a spirited discussion. The president made it exceedingly clear that he will not accept a clean reauthorization … without real reform,” Paul said.
Horowitz’s December report criticized the Justice Department and the FBI for at least 17 “significant errors and omissions” related to the FISA surveillance of Trump campaign associate Carter Page, a U.S. citizen who was never charged with wrongdoing, and its heavy reliance on British ex-spy Christopher Steele’s salacious and unverified dossier.
The reform bill is not without critics on both sides of the aisle.
Zoe Lofgren, a Democratic member of the House Judiciary Committee, stalled the FISA reauthorization effort last month, saying, “If we don’t take this opportunity to reform the FISA process, we are missing an opportunity.”
On Wednesday, she said she opposed the new FISA deal because “this bill does not include significant reforms that are necessary to protect Americans’ civil liberties.”
Nadler called this “ridiculous” and said the proposal was “very substantial reform.”
The conservative House Freedom Caucus also rejected the proposal, claiming the reforms were “insufficient” and “anything short of significant and substantive reforms would betray the trust of the American people.”
Rep. Tom Massie of Kentucky said the bill “will have the thin varnish of reform on it, designed to whitewash the egregious constitutional violations that have been going on.” Rep. Chip Roy of Texas said that “the FISA draft is more than disappointing” and urged Trump to veto it. And Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona said it was “outrageous” that the bill “protects candidates for Congress over everyday Americans.”
On the Senate side, Paul tweeted that “the ‘Deal’ on FISA is weak sauce and diluted and made impotent by A.G. Barr.” Sen. Mike Lee of Utah said, “Donald Trump has asked for real FISA reforms, not fake ones. Sad!”
