Could the U.S. be attacked this weekend? Critical 'spy tool' that stops ... trends now

A key intelligence tool used to surveil terrorists is set to expire after a Saturday midnight deadline. 

The Senate looks poised to blow through the April 19 deadline to pass legislation to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Authority (FISA), and now 'America will go blind,' according to Intelligence Chairman Mike Turner.  

On Thursday, in a 67-32 vote, the Senate invoked cloture, allowing debate to begin on the bill, but delay tactics from privacy advocates stalled quick passage. Senators are still going back and forth over amendments. 

A final vote on FISA could be kicked to Sunday or Monday. 

'We will go blind on April 20,' Intelligence Chairman Mike Turner told reporters last week, stressing the urgency of the national security surveillance tool. 

Sen. Rand Paul, a FISA critic, seemed unconcerned. 

'I'm not concerned with the date,' he said. 

Former national security officials warned in a letter to the Senate on Thursday that 'even slight delays in surveillance and analysis could have grave consequences in particular for counterterrorism and cybersecurity efforts– fields in which adversaries arise and move quickly.'

'A statutory lapse may well trigger judicial challenges to ongoing operations under the current certifications approved by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court,' the letter went on. 

'The leaders of the Intelligence Community have been clear that we currently face imminent, complex and diverse threats. This is not the time to take risks with national security.' 

Last week the House approved a two-year extension of a controversial foreign surveillance program that can help track foreign terrorists after a chaotic week of Republican infighting.

Bipartisan efforts to require a warrant for intelligence officials to pick up communications of those on U.S. soil with suspected terrorists failed in the House and are expected to fail in the Senate. 

Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., are trying to force a vote on an amendment that would require an amendment to pick up any communications that involve Americans. 

Senate leadership does not want to amend the House-passed bill, because then the House would have to vote on the new Senate version and FISA would lapse until they did so. 

In a statement, Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen called Durbin's amendment a 'flat-out prohibition on our ability to use U.S. person queries to disrupt threats and protect Americans.'

'It is also not a 'compromise.' It's an extreme proposal that cripples the value of Section 702, especially in protecting Americans from lethal plotting, hacking, recruitment as spies, and more,' Olsen said.

Last week, after the House's passage of FISA, Trump said he is 'not a fan' of FISA but did not try to whip members against voting for it. 

'I'm not a big fan of FISA. But I told everybody I said do what you want,' Trump said during a press conference at Mar-a-Lago standing next to Speaker Mike Johnson.

'They put a lot of checks and balances on and I guess it's down to two years now so that it would come due in the early part of my administration.' 

'I know [FISA] probably better than anybody,' Trump claimed. 'You know they spied on my campaign. You do know that right? And they did lots of other bad things.' 

Trump had deflated chances of FISA's passing the House ahead of a failed rule vote to advance it earlier this week with a scathing post to Truth Social.

'KILL FISA, IT WAS ILLEGALLY USED AGAINST ME, AND MANY OTHERS. THEY SPIED ON MY CAMPAIGN!!! DJT,' Trump wrote. 

But Johnson made an agreement with Trump and his allies to renew it only for two years instead of five, so they could hash out more reforms under a potential Trump administration.

Another part of the law that is not up for reauthorization - Title 1 - was used to spy on Trump campaign adviser Carter Page in 2016 when he was suspected of communications with the Russians. Trump reauthorized FISA in 2018. 

Trump's comments at the Friday news conference were a more passive opposition. 

Section 702 specifically allows the U.S. government to surveil foreign nationals with suspected terror ties who are not on U.S. soil, even if the party on the other side of such communications is a U.S. national in America. 

A hotly contested amendment from Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., to require a warrant before picking up conversations of those on U.S. soil who communicate with suspected terrorists failed on a rare tie vote, 212-212.

Speaker Mike Johnson cast the final vote that tanked the amendment - a move that is sure to rankle hardliners. 

'Being the vote that took down the warrant amendment certainly brought other members over to my side,' said Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Johnson, who she has filed a motion to oust from the speakership.

'This is a sad day for America. The Speaker doesn't always vote in the House, but he was the tie breaker today. He voted against warrants,' Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., wrote

read more from dailymail.....