Republicans hope Trump drops Pulte to save surveillance law

Donald Trump’s decision to make Bill Pulte acting director of national intelligence has become the latest obstacle in a fight over one of the government’s most important surveillance tools. Republican leaders are now looking for an off-ramp, because Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is set to expire on June 12 after a six-week extension approved on April 30.

The stakes are broader than a personnel dispute. Section 702 allows the government to collect communications of non-U.S. persons abroad under court-approved parameters, but senators from both parties have long warned that Americans’ messages can be swept up and searched without a warrant. The 2024 reauthorization, enacted through the Reforming Intelligence and Securing America Act, added annual FBI query training, tighter oversight of sensitive queries and accountability measures for improper searches. It also expanded the definition of foreign intelligence information to include international illicit drug production, distribution and financing.

The fight sharpened after Trump named Pulte on June 3 despite his lack of intelligence experience. Pulte is the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and chairman of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, a portfolio that has nothing to do with the intelligence community. Democrats have responded with an ultimatum: they will not support a Section 702 renewal while Pulte remains acting DNI.

That warning carried immediate force in the Senate. On June 5, lawmakers rejected a long-term reauthorization in a 47-52 procedural vote. Seven Republicans joined Democrats in voting against moving ahead: Josh Hawley of Missouri, John Kennedy of Louisiana, Mike Lee of Utah, Rand Paul of Kentucky, Eric Schmitt of Missouri, Rick Scott of Florida and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania was the only Democrat to vote yes. The result exposed the depth of GOP resistance to any bill that cannot keep a Democratic coalition together.

Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley said, “It’s all got everything to do with Pulte,” while Senate Majority Leader John Thune said the administration would need a nominee acceptable to enough Democrats to secure renewal. Grassley and Thune are pressing the White House to move quickly, but the White House has stood by Pulte and accused Democrats of holding the spy power hostage.

Before the personnel fight blew up the talks, senators had hoped Mark Warner and Tom Cotton could strike a bipartisan deal. Now the choices are narrowing to another short-term punt or a lapse that Republicans say could create a significant gap in intelligence collection. In Washington, the argument has shifted from who should run intelligence to whether a feud inside the GOP and the White House will let a core surveillance authority run out of time.