Conservative Senate GOP targets House-passed warrantless surveillance bill

Senators in both parties are warning the expanded surveillance authority under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) could lapse after Friday because of a battle over amending the House bill, which has become a target of conservative Republicans and some Democrats.

Opponents of the bill could drag the Senate debate past the 11:59 p.m. Friday deadline, which threatens to cause a lapse in warrantless surveillance authority that some lawmakers warn could leave the nation exposed to an attack at a dangerous time.

“It would be a very big problem. FISA’s incredibly important to alerting us of terrorist plots, for example. And I believe the threat of a terrorist attack is much higher than is being discussed,” warned Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), a senior member of the Senate Intelligence Committee.