Spy Law Extension Runs into Roadblocks as GOP Seeks Enough Votes

March 18, 2026, 10:04 PM UTC

US House leaders haven’t yet decided how to handle the reauthorization of a controversial spy powers law as hardline Republicans are already warning that they wouldn’t back the traditional route when the vote is scheduled.

Leaders are in a bind: as of now they wouldn’t have enough votes from the Republican conference to pass the first procedural step, which is the rule. Democrats usually oppose that procedural step. The House also may not have a two-thirds majority to pass the clean extension outside the traditional process.

“That decision hasn’t been made yet,” Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) said after an ...

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