Trump's intel chiefs give Congress a Dec. 9 deadline to renew FISA's Section 702 before Democrats take over

President Trump's top intelligence and law enforcement officials have told congressional leaders to start renewing the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act's Section 702 by Dec. 9, or risk the program going dark, Fox News Digital reports.

The letter, signed by Attorney General Todd Blanche, Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, went to Senate Majority Leader John Thune, House Speaker Mike Johnson, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

"Section 702 is the single most indispensable tool we have to keep our homeland and the American people safe," the letter says. "If collection stops, we cannot simply turn 702 back on."

According to the letter, the law's statutory authority has already lapsed and collection will stop on March 16 unless it is reauthorized. Starting by Dec. 9 gives the agencies time to finish the steps needed to keep collecting, it says. Missing that date would put "the lives of both Americans in the homeland and our troops stationed abroad at risk in the heightened threat environment," the officials wrote. Clayton and Ratcliffe briefed the Gang of Eight on the threat picture this week.

An administration official told Fox News Digital it will be "a huge priority" for the White House in the lame-duck session, before Democrats take control of both chambers in January. "Otherwise, we're kind of in trouble from a national security standpoint," the official said.

Privacy advocates have long objected to Section 702 because it can sweep in Americans' communications with foreign targets. ODNI credits the program with stopping terror plots, including a planned attack on a 2024 concert in Vienna.