Congress keeps kicking surveillance reform down the road

Congress has reauthorized Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act — but only for another 45 days. The extension is meant to give legislators more time to negotiate reforms to the controversial wiretapping bill. If the past few weeks are any indication of how future debates will go, however, we’re in for a bumpy ride. The House renewed Section 702 with minor reforms on Wednesday evening. The bill didn’t include the hotly debated warrant requirement, but it did feature a provision prohibiting the Federal Reserve from issuing Central Bank Digital Currencies, which Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) described as a nonstarter. “Three weeks is more than enough time to negotiate a reform bill,” Thune said on the Senate floor on Thursday. “That is, if members are serious about negotiating.” That’s the open question. Senators tussled over the length of the extension. Ron Wyden (D-OR) favored a three-week reauthorization, while Tom Cotton (R-AR) called for a 45-day extension, citing an upcoming one-week recess. Section 702, Cotton said, was essential to US Armed Forces’ raid on Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro. The Senate ultimately landed on a 45-day extension, which the House upheld Thursday afternoon in a 261-111 vote. Negotiations over FISA’s future are likely to be fraught. On Wednesday, Rep. …