House GOP Pushes FISA Renewal, Senate Undecided

0:00The Republican-led House is pushing a three-year renewal of a key U.S. surveillance program set to expire this Friday. It's part of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act that lets agencies like the CIA and NSA grab communications from foreign targets without Warrens, even if Americans get caught up in the mix, the bill adds some oversight tweaks but skips the warrant rule critics one. Earlier this week, they cleared a big procedural hurdle after weeks of failed attempts, including a late-night scramble that led to a short-term path. Until April 30th, now a full vote is lined up for Wednesday afternoon, a real win for GOP leaders. Lawmakers are split hard on this, with folks like Rep Chibroy pushing back, saying the Intel crowd always warns of doom, but Americans died protecting. Fourth Amendment rights against government snooping. Privacy hawks call it a raw deal for civil liberties. The plan ramps up checks like monthly reviews of U.S. person searches, criminal penalties for misuse, audits on targeting, and better Congress access, to FISA courts.

1:03Trump and his Intel picks wanted an 18-month-street extension with zero changes. Meanwhile, the Senate's a wildcard. It's tied to a central bank digital currency ban that majority leader John Thune calls dead on arrival. He floated a 60-day stopgap instead, leaving the whole thing hanging as talk stragg on. Local news, powered by AI. This is Canada News Today.