Rockford Sun

Congressman Darin LaHood, representing Illinois' 16th district, engaged senior Trump Administration officials at an annual hearing of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. The focus was on examining worldwide threats affecting the United States.

During the session, LaHood, who chairs the House Intelligence Subcommittee on the National Security Agency and Cyber, directed questions at Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director John Ratcliffe and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel. The main topic was Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which is key in the protection of American citizens and the nation's security.

LaHood addressed Director Ratcliffe: “I want to focus my questions this morning on FISA Section 702,” said Rep. LaHood. “Director Ratcliffe, welcome back to the Committee. In your confirmation hearing, before the Senate, you were asked extensively about FISA Section 702, and I think you laid out a compelling narrative on how, as you described it, ‘how indispensable it is to national security.’ You were also asked about a warrant requirement on Section 702. And your answer to that was, on whether a warrant requirement makes sense on 702, ‘The answer is no. We’re talking about national security issues where sometimes minutes matter in the ability to disrupt or interdict the bad actors or to act upon the intelligence that you can gain from that.’ Director, I wanted to ask you, is that still your belief today regarding the warrant requirement?”

Ratcliffe confirmed his stance: "Congressman, it absolutely is," said CIA Director Ratcliffe. "You’ve accurately reflected my prior testimony. It is also my testimony that 702 is indispensable to our intelligence picture, and the loss of it would be catastrophic to CIA. And the reason that I say that is, from this position, is not only that 50 percent of all of our critical analysis provided to the President as Commander in Chief in the President’s daily brief is 702 derived, but also 70 percent of CIA’s success with regard to advanced weapons counter proliferation is the result of 702 collected information. And finally, 90 percent of CIA’s successful interdictions with regard to synthetic drugs, like fentanyl, are the result of 702 collection. It’s absolutely indispensable to the work that CIA does, and I’m glad that you gave me the opportunity to reflect that to this Committee."

This significant hearing featured five key intelligence officials, including Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and National Security Agency Director General Timothy Haugh, providing a broad overview of national security strategies.

In a 2024 overhaul, the House Intelligence Committee aimed to prevent FISA abuses, balancing civil liberties with the continued pursuit of terrorists. LaHood participated in a 2023 bipartisan group focused on overseeing the reauthorization of Section 702 for the 118th Congress.