FISA Amendments Act Reauthorization Act of 2012

Floor Speech

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Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to this FISA legislation. I do want to thank my ranking member for yielding to me, despite our difference of opinion.

As a member of the Intelligence Committee, I take the threat of terrorism very seriously, but I believe we are fully capable of protecting our security and safeguarding our precious civil liberties. This law authorizes the government to collect mass electronic communications coming into and going out of the United States so long as no U.S. person in the United States is intentionally targeted. Yet in April 2009, The New York Times reported that the National Security Agency ``intercepted private email messages and phone calls of Americans on a scale that went beyond the broad legal limits established by Congress.''

Shouldn't our government be required to disclose more about the extent and nature of the surveillance? Is this an authority that should be extended until 2017? Should we at least be able to consider an amendment to reexamine this law in 2013? But no amendments are allowed today.

I urge a ``no'' vote.

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