Speaker Johnson Says Spying Authority ‘Must Be Dramatically Reformed’

Published on December 12, 2023

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Dec. 12 said that a controversial spying authority “must be dramatically reformed,” but failed to take sides in an ongoing dispute over the matter between two powerful House committees. The authority in question, Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), is designed to allow U.S. intelligence officials to gather information on foreign agents working outside the United States. While the original legislation passed in 1978 was designed to safeguard American civil liberties from abuses of spying powers, a 2008 amendment to the bill, including Section 702, significantly expanded its scope. Under the rules laid out in Section 702, intel officials can seek to “unmask” information about Americans inside the United States who had contact with targeted foreign individuals....

Continue reading on website
Other news

Rwanda Bill Passes Second Reading Despite Tory Rebellion

December 12, 2023
The government has cleared the first hurdle in Parliament to push through an emergency bill in a bid to revive its plan to deport illegal immigrants to Rwanda.The Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill passed the second reading on Tuesday evening by 313 votes to 269 despite a rebellion from the right wing of the Conservative Party.A total of 38 Conservative MPs abstained, including former

Rudy Giuliani’s Lawyers Say Paying $43 Million in Defamation Case Is a ‘Death Penalty’

December 12, 2023
Lawyers for former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani argued that paying $43 million to election workers in a defamation civil case would be a type of “death penalty” for the 79-year-old.Two Georgia election workers have brought the lawsuit against Mr. Giuliani over statements that he made after the 2020 election. A judge in Washington has already issued a ruling that Mr. Giuliani defamed the two w