Trump threw a 'live hand grenade' into the GOP agenda

Congress has been locked in an ongoing battle over the reauthorization of a key national security tool that has been repeatedly frustrated by Republican infighting. Now with the extension deadline looming on Friday, Capitol Hill insiders say that President Donald Trump has tossed a “live hand grenade” into the process that threatens to blow it up altogether.

“This is not a problem between Senate Democrats and Republicans,” declared Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) on Tuesday. “This was the administration throwing a live hand grenade into a critical reauthorization 10 days out.”

The grenade he’s referring to is Bill Pulte, whom Trump nominated to replace Tulsi Gabbard as Director of National Intelligence. Pulte has drawn bipartisan criticism for his past attempts to help leverage the government against Trump’s enemies, prompting Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SC) to assert, “We don’t need a weaponized DNI; we need professionals there… If he’s somebody they want in that position permanently, he’s got a lengthy road ahead of him.”

That road to confirmation crosses paths with the deadline to extend FISA Section 702, which allows the government to monitor the communications of foreign targets without a warrant. The reauthorization has previously been blocked by privacy hawks within the GOP who demand, among other concessions, guardrails to prevent the provision from being used as a “backdoor” for spying on Americans.

It is precisely that potential for misuse that has Democrats threatening to foil the reauthorization, asserting that Section 702 could be weaponized by Pulte to target Trump’s foes.

“The idea that we’re going to allow Mr. Pulte to be potentially in charge of how this tool is used or manipulated, that’s going to be a very uphill path to convince Democrats,” said Senator Mark Warner (D-VA), the top Senate Intelligence Democrat, on Monday. “This was a self-inflicted harm.”

Republicans will need the votes of at least 15 Democrats to pass the extension, and are now admitting that Pulte could tank the effort entirely.

“It’s all got everything to do with Pulte,” Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley (R-IA) said Monday. He went on to argue that Pulte is only a “temporary” appointee and that “the sooner the president gets somebody nominated, the sooner we’re going to be able to get 702 through.”

While the White House has publicly backed Pulte — who has zero experience in national intelligence – asserting his qualifications for the position, “Trump is interviewing potential nominees to permanently fill the director of national intelligence role, according to a Republican lawmaker and a GOP congressional aide, both of whom were granted anonymity to disclose private conversations. But there’s no guarantee that the president will move quickly, and Republicans said Monday they didn’t know if he would make a decision before Friday’s reauthorization deadline.”

If Section 702 is allowed to lapse, proponents argue that the country would be left without an essential security tool. Should it expire, intelligence agencies would be required to obtain a court’s approval to monitor targeted communications on a case-by-case basis.

“It’s a total mess,” said Representative Jim Himes (D-CT), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, who has been working with Republicans to secure the extension. “Very sadly, I think we’re going to test this untested question about whether the program can run on a judicial certification alone.”

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