Trump Just Blew Up His Own National Security Program Days After It Stopped a Terror Attack

You know what’s maddening? When the government actually does its job, stops the bad guys, and then immediately shoots itself in the foot. That’s exactly what just happened with Section 702 of FISA, the counterterrorism surveillance program that helped the FBI thwart a plot to turn President Trump’s UFC birthday bash into a massacre. We’re talking bomb-laden drones and snipers targeting an event that could have killed thousands. The good guys won. And now the whole thing might expire because Washington can’t get out of its own way.

Section 702 isn’t some abstract policy debate for wonks to argue about over coffee. It’s the real deal, the kind of intelligence tool that keeps Americans breathing. The program lets our government collect intelligence on foreigners abroad who use U.S. communication systems. Simple enough. It’s been credited with stopping terror plots from Europe to the Middle East, including that Taylor Swift concert attack that would have been catastrophic. This is the stuff that shows up in the President’s daily intelligence briefing because it matters.

But here’s where it gets complicated, and honestly, where reasonable people can disagree. The program sweeps up communications from Americans who happen to be talking to foreign suspects. Critics argue there are loopholes that allow surveillance of Americans on U.S. soil without proper warrants. That’s a legitimate concern if you believe in the Fourth Amendment, which I do. Individual liberty means something, and government overreach is real. We’ve seen the FBI abuse its power before. Remember the whole Russia investigation fiasco?

The Senate was actually close to threading the needle on this one. They were moving toward confirming Jay Clayton as Director of National Intelligence, which would have cleared a major obstacle to reauthorizing Section 702. Sen. Angus King called it “the single most important program in terms of maintaining national security.” Republicans and Democrats were finding common ground. Progress was happening.

Then Trump torpedoed the whole thing. He pulled Clayton’s confirmation hearing at the last minute and demanded that his SAVE America Act get attached to the bill. Just like that, back to square one. Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, didn’t mince words. He said Trump is “putting 702 reauthorization almost out of reach.” Sen. Ron Wyden, who’s been around longer than most, admitted he’s never seen anything quite like this.

Look, I get the frustration with business as usual in Washington. Trump’s unpredictability is part of why people elected him. He promised to shake things up, drain the swamp, all that. And there’s value in keeping establishment types on their toes. But timing matters. When you’ve just survived a terror plot that your own intelligence apparatus stopped using this exact program, maybe that’s not the moment to blow up the reauthorization process.

Sen. John Kennedy called the terror suspects “goobers,” which is classic Kennedy, but these goobers nearly pulled off something horrific. They had drones rigged with explosives and sniper plans ready to go. The fact that we’re even having a debate about letting Section 702 expire days after it proved its worth is absurd. It’s the kind of thing that makes you wonder if anyone in Washington actually thinks about consequences anymore.

The Democrats are furious, naturally. They recoiled weeks ago when Trump tapped Bill Pulte, his Housing director, to serve as interim DNI. That was seen as a provocation, putting someone with zero intelligence experience in charge of our most sensitive national security operations. Clayton’s nomination was supposed to be the olive branch, the adult in the room who could get this done. Now that’s gone too.

Here’s the thing about national security. It doesn’t care about political theater. Terrorists don’t wait for Congress to sort out its internal drama. They plan, they adapt, they strike when we’re weak. Section 702 gives us an edge, a way to see threats coming before they materialize. Is it perfect? No. Should there be reforms to protect American citizens from unwarranted surveillance? Absolutely. But letting it expire while we play political chicken is reckless.

Trump needs to recognize what’s at stake here. This isn’t about winning a news cycle or making a point about his SAVE America Act. This is about keeping the tools that stopped people from bombing his own birthday party. That should focus the mind pretty quickly. The Senate was ready to move forward. They had a path. Now everyone’s back at the starting line wondering what just happened.

We can have the debate about FISA reforms. We should have that debate. But we need to do it while keeping Section 702 alive, not while it’s bleeding out on the Senate floor. National security isn’t a bargaining chip. It’s the foundation everything else rests on.