Thirty Republican senators voted to reauthorize a contentiously debated warrantless- spying tool on Saturday.
The bill to reauthorize Section 702 passed by a 60-34 vote after six amendments were defeated. Support and opposition crossed party lines, with 17 Democrats and independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont joining 18 Republicans in voting no, while Republican Sens. J.D. Vance of Ohio, Shelly Moore Capito of West Virginia and Eric Schmitt of Missouri and Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Raphael Warnock of Georgia and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada did not cast a vote. Thirty Republicans joined 29 Democrats and independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona in voting to pass the measure, which is headed to President Joe Biden’s desk for his signature. (RELATED: Senate Votes To Reauthorize Warrantless Surveillance Tool Minutes After It Expired)
Here are the thirty Republican Senators who voted for final passage: John Barrasso of Wyoming, John Boozman of Arkansas, Katie Britt of Alabama, Ted Budd of North Carolina, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Susan Collins of Maine, John Cornyn of Texas, Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Mike Crapo of Idaho, Joni Ernst of Iowa, Deb Fischer of Nebraska, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Chuck Grassley of Iowa, Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi, John Kennedy of Louisiana, James Lankford of Oklahoma, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Jerry Moran of Kansas, Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, Mitt Romney of Utah, Mike Rounds of South Dakota, Marco Rubio of Florida, Dan Sullivan of Alaska, John Thune of South Dakota, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Todd Young of Indiana.
I voted against this FISA reauthorization bill because it failed to include the most important requirement to protect Americans’ civil rights: that law enforcement get a warrant before targeting a U.S. citizen. Read my full statement here: https://t.co/b5QElt7b8H
— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) April 20, 2024
The bill previously passed the House of Representatives after an amendment to require a warrant failed on a 212-212 tie vote, with House Speaker Mike Johnson and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise among those voting it down. A similar amendment was defeated by a 50-42 vote in the Senate that, like the vote for final passage, crossed party lines.
My statement regarding the reauthorization of FISA Section 702: pic.twitter.com/3AxyLCRbOs
— Senator Mitt Romney (@SenatorRomney) April 20, 2024
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act drew controversy after the FBI obtained warrants under the act to monitor communications by Carter Page and other associates of former President Donald Trump during Trump’s successful 2016 campaign for the White House. The application relied on evidence from the now-discredited Steele Dossier.
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