DelBene on FISA Vote: “Federal Government Shouldn’t Have a Loophole That It Can Exploit to Override Our Civil Liberties”

Today, Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (WA-01) released the following statement after the House FISA vote: “It is a huge mistake for Congress to continue allowing the federal government to have unchecked access to Americans’ personal data. That’s why I’ve voted against reauthorizing FISA four times since I’ve been in Congress under both Republican and Democratic presidents. The proposed changes in this extension don’t go far enough to protect Americans’ civil liberties. Without enforceable baseline privacy protections, the government goes to data brokers to purchase information on our citizens. Without strong warrant standards, there is no requirement to provide any justification to surveil Americans. People deserve these baseline protections, and the federal government shouldn’t have a loophole that it can exploit to override our civil liberties. This should be a concern regardless of who is in the White House. Congress should exercise its oversight responsibility and put the necessary reforms to these surveillance powers in place.”