WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The Trump administration must reveal how many US citizens have their phone calls, emails and other communications monitored without warrants under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), Wyden said in a press release.
"[T]he key question is, and has always been: how many law-abiding Americans are having their communications swept in all that collection?" Wyden asked on Wednesday. "Without even an estimate of that number, there is no way to judge what Section 702 means for the civil liberties of Americans."
"Congress and the American people deserve a fully informed debate about this reauthorization. And we can’t have that debate unless we know the impact of Section 702 on the privacy and constitutional rights of Americans," Wyden said.
The program expires at the end of this year, but Senator Dan Coats, nominee to serve as Director of National Intelligence, called renewing Section 702 his top legislative priority this year, Wyden noted.
