House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) erupted at Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL), a normally loyal pro-Trump lawmaker who nonetheless opposes passing a reauthorization of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.
According to Axios, "Johnson lost his cool on the House floor, telling Rep. Anna Paulina Luna she would bear responsibility for 'thousands of American deaths' if she votes against reauthorizing FISA, according to sources familiar with the exchange. 'I was getting a spanking on the floor,' Luna told Axios of the previously unreported Wednesday dustup."
FISA is a key mechanism by which the United States gathers intelligence on hostile foreign powers.
Its methods have been controversial across the political spectrum at times, but President Donald Trump took the controversy to high gear when he and his allies accused the process of being weaponized to persecute him during the Russia investigation in 2016.
Trump now needs FISA reauthorized more than ever, with his war in Iran continuing to flare up — but a number of pro-Trump lawmakers oppose it based in part on the conspiracy theories he himself spread about the law in previous years.
Luna is not alone in her opposition. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), another MAGA stalwart, is also at odds with the president on the issue, going so far as to dig up old posts from Trump years ago opposing FISA.
