Six Republicans vote no on FISA extension

Six Republican senators sided with Democrats early Friday to vote against advancing the extension of warrantless spy powers set to expire next week, complicating efforts to keep it alive.

The procedural vote failed by a vote of 47 to 52 after Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.) and Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) broke with their GOP colleagues.

Some of the pushback was attributed to President Trump’s tapping of Federal Housing Finance Agency chief Bill Pulte to serve as acting head of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), which received backlash from both sides of the aisle.

Lee brushed off the speculation that anger over Pulte’s appointment was the motivator behind the defectors voting with Democrats, instead pointing to privacy concerns.

“FISA 702 reauthorization failed because it did not contain a warrant requirement for spying on Americans,” the........

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