U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin called on his colleagues on June 3 to support significant reforms to Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which is set to expire on June 12 following a recent extension by Congress. Speaking from the Senate floor, Durbin said that Section 702 enables warrantless surveillance and has resulted in the collection of millions of communications from Americans not authorized for surveillance.
“Under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, the government collects communications of foreigners overseas without a warrant from any court. But, in the process, the government, unfortunately, collects millions of communications of innocent Americans—people they are not authorized to surveil. Once collected, the government searches these communications without a warrant from any court… Every American needs to understand that this law allows the government to listen to your phone calls and read your private messages that have been collected under Section 702. The government does all of that without any court approval,” Durbin began. “This is a fundamental flaw that I have worked to change for a long time.”
Durbin said that despite Fourth Amendment protections against warrantless searches, agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation and National Security Agency have bypassed these rights for years. He cited more than 7,000 warrantless FBI searches last year and described abuses as “persistent and widespread.” According to Durbin, “These abuses, according to the FISA Court, have been ‘persistent and widespread.’ The government itself has reported hundreds of thousands of unlawful searches using this authority… As further detailed in the Brennan Center’s report, the government has used Section 702 to spy unlawfully on many people. Who have they spied on? Members of Congress, congressional staff, judges, journalists, protesters, political donors, even women on dating apps.”
He also referenced concerns about oversight: “Past attempts at reform have not solved the problem… As the Brennan Center explained, ‘the current system of Section 702 oversight relies almost entirely on the executive branch self-policing to prevent, detect, and report abuses.’ In other words, the fox is watching the chicken coop. That’s a flawed system under any Administration. Under this Administration it is especially alarming.”
Durbin discussed bipartisan legislation with Senator Mike Lee known as the Security and Freedom Enhancement (SAFE) Act which would require judicial warrants before accessing Americans’ private communications except in emergencies or special circumstances. “Congress does not need to choose between protecting national security and preserving Americans’ constitutional rights. We can do both… Our bill [the SAFE Act] would require the government to obtain a judicial warrant before accessing contents … That’s exactly what we believe Constitution requires,” he said.
Durbin concluded by urging colleagues not to reauthorize FISA Section 702 without additional safeguards: “The time to finally protect Americans from warrantless surveilling under Section 702 is now… I oppose reauthorization …without guardrails …I urge all my colleagues do same.”
Durbin has held leadership roles including Senate Democratic Whip and represented Illinois in multiple committees focused on judiciary matters as well as health initiatives such as childhood asthma programs, according to his official website.
