Trump suffers rare defeat with House Republicans on FISA The House GOP revolt on FISA Friday marked a rare setback for President Trump with his own party, exposing the limits of his influence over House Republicans. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) faced a significant challenge as the White House and GOP leadership struggled to secure support for a clean extension of Section 702, a controversial national security tool. This failure highlighted the growing fractures within the Republican conference and the challenges of aligning diverse factions on contentious issues. The White House had pushed for a clean extension of the FISA program, which grants intelligence agencies broad surveillance powers. However, some of Trump’s closest allies resisted, citing longstanding concerns about privacy and oversight. Over two dozen Republicans voted against two procedural votes early Friday, a move that was previously uncommon for majority members but has become increasingly frequent in recent months. This resistance forced GOP leaders to fall back on a last-resort 10-day extension of the spy powers program. Efforts to secure support included an intense pressure campaign by the White House and GOP leadership. CIA Director John Ratcliffe addressed Republicans at their weekly meeting, and the administration held multiple briefings at the White House specifically for holdout lawmakers. A makeshift "SCIF" (Secure Compartmented Information Facility) was even set up off the House floor to streamline access to classified information during legislative strategy sessions. Despite these measures, the White House’s push failed to sway enough Republicans to support the clean extension.#trump #house_republicans #mike_johnson #john_ratcliffe #fisa
