FISA reauthorization stalls in early-morning Senate vote

Savannah Behrmann, CQ-Roll Call on Jun 5, 2026

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WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans early Friday could not muster enough votes to move forward on a long-term reauthorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, leaving the key surveillance power, which expires next week, in limbo as both chambers leave the Capitol for the weekend.

The Senate voted 47-52 on the motion to proceed to the measure, with a bipartisan cohort voting against the extension. Its opponents have been frustrated by the lack of privacy changes to the program — which allows the U.S. government to collect digital communications of foreigners located outside the country — and by President Donald Trump’s pick of Bill Pulte to be the acting director of national intelligence.

The vote’s outcome was uncertain hours before it began. But Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters they were holding the vote “because any hope of (starting) next week, we’ve got to get the process started.”

Thune acknowledged even before the vote that several in his conference opposed the program without changes.

Section 702 of the law expires on June 12. Seven Republican senators — Josh Hawley of Missouri, John Kennedy of Louisiana, Mike Lee of Utah, Rand Paul of Kentucky, Eric Schmitt of Missouri, Rick Scott of Florida and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama — joined Democrats in voting against advancing the legislation, while Democrat John Fetterman of Pennsylvania voted in favor of moving forward.

The program is controversial because it also sweeps up the communications of Americans and allows the FBI to search through data without a warrant, using information like email addresses.

At the beginning of this week, there was hope that a three-year extension floated by Senate Intelligence Chairman Tom Cotton, R-Ark., had bipartisan backing from ranking member Mark Warner, D-Va. But Trump’s pick of Pulte quickly deflated that possibility, with Democrats saying they would let the program lapse because of the appointment.

Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and chairman of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, was tapped Tuesday by Trump to replace Director Tulsi Gabbard when she steps down at the end of June. Democrats raised concerns over Pulte’s lack of intelligence experience as well as his past referrals of some of Trump’s perceived foes to the Department of Justice for mortgage fraud allegations.

Trump clarified Thursday that Pulte is “not going to be permanent.” But under the Vacancies Act, Pulte could serve as acting director for at least 210 days without needing Senate confirmation once Gabbard steps down.

Warner told reporters Thursday that Pulte had “no national security experience.”

“The one thing we know is he’s already taken confidential information and weaponized it as the head of the mortgage agencies. Does anybody think it makes good sense to give them the keys to the 18 intelligence agencies, not just on 702, but across the board?” Warner said.

During Thursday night and Friday morning’s vote-a-rama on a budget reconciliation bill — which the FISA vote followed — Warner took aim at Pulte, introducing an amendment that would have banned Senate-confirmed leaders of federal agencies and departments from serving as the DNI at the same time. It did not pass, by a vote of 49-49.

Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., said Wednesday after Trump announced Pulte’s appointment, “The timing of this announcement could not be worse. With just over a week until FISA Section 702’s authorities expire, this announcement and its timing clearly make passing an extension of FISA much harder.”

Thune told reporters moments after the vote closed, “There have been timing issues around several things” the White House “has done in the last few weeks.”

But he placed the blame on Democrats, calling it “irresponsible not to keep this agency going.”

“We can litigate,” he said, adding of Pulte: “He’s not going to be nominated for the full-time position there. I just don’t think there are really good reasons for doing this.”

Thune said a short term extension to keep FISA’s lights on is “something the administration will have to consider.”

“This week, this was a procedural vote, obviously, which we can take another run at again next week. But you know, a few days from now, on June 12, that program goes dark, and I just think that would be a dangerous mistake for the country,” he said.

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