Rand Paul blasts Johnson for going against FISA amendment: He ‘hasn’t held his ground’

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) on Sunday forced a tie-breaking vote on the controversial Espionage Act amendment, upsetting House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Ky.), which upset some of the most conservative Republicans. , Louisiana).

Conservatives and progressives came together last week to demand changes to reauthorize the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which would require a warrant for the government to spy on Americans. The vote on the amendment was tied with Johnson voting against it, and the amendment lost momentum.

“Chairman Johnson was incredibly wrong,” Paul said in an interview on “Fox News Sunday.” “He tore his tie. He voted for a Democrat. Here, House Republican leaders joined Democrats in voting against the warrant request.”

“We also have Chairman Johnson backing the Democratic majority to vote yes on the spending package again,” he continued. “Now that I think about it, I don’t see a difference between Mike Johnson being in power and the Democrats being in power.”

The vote on the FISA amendment was bipartisan, with 86 Republicans, including Johnson, and 126 Democrats voting against it. Paul was a liberal-minded conservative and a leading supporter of the FISA amendment in the Senate.

Despite support from former President Donald Trump over the weekend, the vote infuriated some of the most conservative members of Congress and added to growing opposition to Johnson.

Paul called on Johnson to work harder to earn his trust.

“Johnson hasn’t stood his ground,” Paul said. “He has the power. He has the majority. Let’s use the power of the wallet. Speaker Johnson, do something that makes us think you’re different from the Democrats. But for now. I don’t feel a big difference.”

After Friday’s vote, some FISA amendment hardliners said they were prepared to travel to Republican districts to confront those who blocked the amendment.

“All of these members who voted against the warrant request are the decisive voters. They own it,” Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) said after the vote. Stated. “And some of them may soon see me showing up in their districts to campaign against them and uphold the Constitution.”

After the amendment failed, the broader FISA package easily passed the House. In a last-ditch protest, opponents postponed introducing the bill in the House of Commons until this week.

Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), who sponsored the amendment, called on voters to pressure lawmakers to support the warrant clause in the Senate bill.

“This didn’t come from the floor of the House of Representatives, so we all have to go home and answer to voters in the next 72 hours why we’re siding with the intelligence agencies, the deep state, and the swamp over the rights and freedoms of the American people.” ‘People,’ Roy said.

“That was my choice today,” he continued. “And everyone in this organization, whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat, voted against the amendment that protects Americans and protects them with warrants. They have to answer for that.”

Mr. Johnson had previously criticized FISA Section 702’s surveillance powers, but recently reversed his stance after becoming chairman. The provision would allow U.S. intelligence agencies to collect communications of foreigners under investigation, including communications with Americans.

“When I was a member of the Justice Department, I saw all kinds of abuses at the FBI. Terrible abuses, time and time again,” Johnson told reporters last week. “And when I became chairman, I…understood the need for FISA Section 702 and how important it is to national security, and I went through a classified briefing from a kind of different perspective. Ta.”