Mike Johnson suffers embarrassing defeat over government spying bill Trump wanted to kill

House votes on spending package to prevent partial government shutdown

Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson watched his party revolt on another key rule vote on Wednesday as the House voted on reforms to the US’s domestic surveillance system.

A rebellion led by members of the House Freedom Caucus tanked a vote to advance the legislation, angry that the proposed reforms would not require FBI agents to acquire a warrant from a judge to spy on American citizens. Disgruntled members assembled on the House steps after the rule vote failed and accused Mr Johnson of putting his “thumb on the scale” against an amendment that would have made that key change to the legislation.

Donald Trump, whose 2016 campaign for president was surveilled by the FBI after it was accused of potentially communicating or colluding with Russia, opened up a major offensive in favour of tighter reforms of the legislation and is thought to have contributed to the defeat of today’s vote.

Speaker Johnson and his allies had warned at Wednesday’s GOP conference meeting that a passage of a clean bill to renew the program was the likely outcome of today’s vote failing.

This is a breaking story. More to follow…

Independent readers are independently-minded global citizens. They are not defined by traditional demographics or profiles, but by their attitudes. In today’s increasingly fragmented world, communities value real facts and frank opinions delivered first-hand from a non-biased news brand that they can trust. Armed with information and inspiration, Independent readers are empowered and equipped to take a stand for the things they believe in.