Bowling Green Today

December 13, 2023

In a move to safeguard the civil liberties of American citizens, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) has called on the Senate to remove the reauthorization of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) from the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Dr. Paul's efforts are aimed at reforming Section 702 of FISA, which currently allows the U.S. government to spy on its citizens without a warrant.

A bipartisan group of 34 senators joined Dr. Paul in voting to remove the reauthorization of FISA from the annual NDAA. However, the final vote tally fell six votes short of ending domestic spying authority.

During his prepared remarks ahead of the vote, Dr. Paul stated, "So far as the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act allows our government to spy on U.S. citizens without a warrant, it is unconstitutional." He also expressed frustration with the lack of meaningful reforms to FISA, saying, "Though we have known when 702 would expire for years, the uniparty never seriously considered or prioritized reforms. And now we are told that we simply have no choice but to extend Section 702 into 2024."

Dr. Paul highlighted the violation of Americans' civil liberties through the warrantless surveillance conducted under Section 702, stating, "Using 702, Americans’ communications content and metadata is inevitably swept up and kept in government databases without a warrant." He further added, "In other words, your texts, emails, and phone calls are collected and stored in a government database without a warrant and then searched by government law enforcement without a warrant."

Emphasizing the importance of constitutional duty and protecting civil liberties, Dr. Paul urged his fellow senators to remove the extension of domestic spying authority from the defense bill. He said, "To protect our civil liberties and the integrity of the congressional conference committee process, we must strip this extension of domestic spying authority out of the defense bill."

Dr. Paul's efforts to remove domestic spying authority from the NDAA have gained significant attention, as he fights to uphold the rights and privacy of American citizens. It remains to be seen whether further reforms to FISA will be made in the future, but for now, the debate surrounding the balance between national security and civil liberties continues.

To find out more, go to this link: https://www.paul.senate.gov/dr-rand-paul-fights-to-protect-civil-liberties-calls-on-senate-to-remove-domestic-spying-authority-in-ndaa/