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FISA, a Key U.S. Spying Power, Is Expiring. What Does That Mean for Foreign Surveillance?

Top officials and some lawmakers say letting a powerful spying authority expire on Saturday will leave the United States dangerously blind. But surveillance can still continue.

© Salwan Georges for The New York Times

Speaker Mike Johnson said that not extending the law, known as Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, risked “a serious calamity on our shores.”
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Trump Picks Jay Clayton for Director of National Intelligence After Backlash Over Bill Pulte

The president said he would nominate Jay Clayton, the U.S. attorney in Manhattan and the former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, for the permanent role.

© Dave Sanders for The New York Times

President Trump’s pick to be the director of national intelligence, Jay Clayton, took over as the U.S. attorney for Manhattan in April 2025.
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House Rejects Bill to Extend Surveillance Power With FISA Section 702 Set to Expire

A measure to temporarily continue a key surveillance law failed in the House, and members left for a weeklong recess, making an expiration all but inevitable.

© Salwan Georges for The New York Times

“We cannot allow that to go dark,” Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters on Wednesday as prospects for the law being renewed appeared increasingly grim.
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FISA Surveillance Law May Expire After Trump Picks Bill Pulte for Intel Post

Republicans are struggling to extend a powerful surveillance authority set to lapse this weekend after President Trump alienated lawmakers with his choice of acting spy chief.

© Eric Lee/The New York Times

President Trump last week named Bill Pulte, a confidant without any national security experience, as acting director of national intelligence.
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