Trump Demands Spy Powers Extension Amid Fight Over Twitter Philanthropist
Classic Washington standoff: the government is about to lose its favorite foreign wiretapping tool because Donald Trump appointed a guy with zero intelligence experience to run the nation's spies.
The drama centers on Bill Pulte, a guy best known for giving away money on Twitter and running the federal housing finance agency. Trump tapped him to temporarily run the entire national intelligence apparatus.
Congress looked at his resume, saw exactly zero intelligence background, and decided to play hardball. Now, senators from both sides of the aisle are threatening to let Section 702 expire. This is the highly controversial law that allows US agencies to sweep up the communications of foreigners.
Legislators are essentially holding America’s massive foreign surveillance program hostage just to block Pulte from taking office.
Naturally, Trump is furious, calling the opposition "Radical Left Dumocrats" and begging for a short-term extension because the military needs it. Meanwhile, even some Republicans are calling his nominee an "incendiary attack dog" who could weaponize the intelligence community.
Keeping the country safe apparently requires either total digital surveillance or letting a real estate guy read the nation's deepest secrets.
Source: CNBC
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