Senators Concerned About DOJ Nominee's Views on Section 702 Surveillance Legislation
Differing views on legislation to reauthorize Section 702 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act authority emerged during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing Tuesday on nomination of John Demers to be DOJ assistant attorney general, National Security Division. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, Dianne…
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Feinstein, D-Calif., and Ron Wyden, R-Ore., pressed Demers on whether he supports requiring a warrant before the FBI can search a database of communications collected under FISA. Courts have ruled consistently that such searches don’t violate Fourth Amendment protections, Demers said. Obtaining a warrant can be a “fair bit of work” because of the probable cause requirement, and could “slow and limit” the work of intelligence agencies, he said. “I’m troubled by your response,” Wyden said, saying he supports the need for the government to have tools it needs to go after threats overseas. Government ought to have a warrant, he said: “We’re going to debate this more.” Wyden is concerned about a provision in the Senate Intelligence bill (S-2010) approved last week that would allow warrantless searches of data which could include Americans’ communications based on a “sliver of concern,” when there are other roads to gaining the same information. Privacy groups have expressed reservations about all three proposed bills that would update Section 702 expiring at year’s end, and dislike S-2010 the most (see 1710300035).