House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is facing backlash from members of his party after he opposed an amendment to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act that failed on the House floor in a tie vote.
The amendment, which would have required the government to obtain a warrant to query the data of people caught up in foreign surveillance, failed to attract the needed votes to pass on Friday, with the chamber deadlocking 212-212. In the event of a tie, an amendment on the House floor fails, per chamber rules.
The outcome angered several House Republicans who argued Johnson could have tipped the scales had he joined a bipartisan coalition of privacy hawks.
“This is a sad day for America,” Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) said in a post on X. “The Speaker doesn’t
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