As The Guardian reports, Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) expires at midnight Friday – a key authority for surveilling foreign targets. Congress failed to renew the provision in time. Trump had previously installed Bill Pulte, head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and a major Republican donor, as acting intelligence chief – a move that drew sharp bipartisan criticism.
To smooth things over, Trump nominated Jay Carney for the permanent DNI role. Carney previously served as White House press secretary under Barack Obama. The decision comes amid a week of political tensions: besides the FISA standoff, a court ruling over the Kennedy Center naming is causing turmoil.
A federal judge ruled on May 29 that Trump’s name was illegally affixed to the Kennedy Center and ordered its removal by Friday. The center’s board, appointed by Trump, sought a stay of the order on Thursday. The judge also blocked planned two-year renovations. Kennedy Center website has already removed Trump’s name.
EuroPulse reported on June 12 on Trump’s nomination of Jay Clayton as intelligence coordinator (https://europulse.today/trump-nominiert-jay-clayton-geheimdienstkoordinator/).
Source: www.theguardian.com
