United States congressman Jim Himes, the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, is privately urging his colleagues to support the Trump administration's request to renew a controversial surveillance program under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. While Himes claims that Congress's 2024 reforms have been effective in preventing domestic misuse, recent changes at the FBI have weakened these safeguards.

Himes argues that the program, designed to intercept the electronic data of foreigners abroad, has a compliance rate exceeding 99 percent over the past two years. However, this metric is based on an Office of Internal Auditing unit that was shut down by FBI Director Kash Patel last year, leaving critical oversight mechanisms inoperative.

According to Liza Goitein from the Brennan Center's Liberty and National Security Program, neither Congress nor the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court conducts independent audits. They rely on the Department of Justice for oversight, a body that has been rebuked by federal courts for providing inaccurate information. This leaves Americans potentially vulnerable to surveillance abuses.

The program’s critics argue that it creates a massive vulnerability given the current administration's efforts to dismantle internal checks at the FBI. While no members of Congress are actively calling to end the 702 program, bills like the recently introduced Government Surveillance Reform Act include emergency carve-outs for threats deemed imminent or life-threatening.

Himes acknowledges his “fundamental lack of faith” in Trump administration leaders but defends the program as necessary for quick responses to terrorist threats. However, the overhaul of the federal workforce has stripped middle management of key civil service protections, potentially undermining the independence needed to prevent abuse.