GOP rebellion against Trump sparks calls to 'thank 20 Republicans who opposed their party'

Multiple prominent Republicans cheered Friday after 20 Republican lawmakers bucked President Donald Trump earlier that morning by blocking a bill the president had aggressively advocated for, an act of defiance that has been described by some as a GOP “revolt.”The bill Trump had advocated for would have extended the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) – a law that permits the U.S. government to conduct mass, warrantless surveillance on Americans in some instances – for at least 18 months. Instead, 20 Republican House members moved to block the bill, forcing House leadership to accept a more temporary 13-day extension.“If this resolution had passed, it’s likely that unconstitutional, warrantless surveillance of Americans would have been extended for five years,” wrote former Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI) in a social media post on X Friday to his nearly 500,000 followers.“Please especially thank the 20 Republicans who opposed their own party to uphold the Constitution and defend our rights.”Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) also joined in on the celebration.“Sometimes Congress does good things, like block the government from being able to spy on Americans without a warrant,” Paul wrote to his nearly 325,000 followers on X.House leadership had initially aimed to extend FISA – which is set to expire on Monday – by five years, and did so in a late-night surprise House session that lasted well into early Friday morning. The plan was immediately met with opposition, with House leadership later pushing an amended version of the bill to extend FISA by 18 months. That, too, failed after the 20 Republican lawmakers moved to block its advance, forcing House leadership to accept the 13-day extension to avoid the law expiring.“[House] Speaker [Mike] Johnson (R-LA) and Rep. Jim Himes (“D”-CT), in EXTREMELY poor form and bad faith, tried to sneak through a FISA reauthorization missing key privacy protections at 2am last night,” wrote Drop Site News reporter Julian Andreone in a social media post on X.“This was a deliberate and bipartisan attempt to subvert the democratic will of the American people, turning over mass surveillance powers to Trump, including the ability to monitor your emails, search history, online dating matches, and even buy your commercial data.”Here’s the roll call for H Res 1175, the rule for considering H R 8035, FISA 702 reauthorization.If this resolution had passed, it’s likely that unconstitutional, warrantless surveillance of Americans would have been extended for five years.Please especially thank the 20… pic.twitter.com/nv3T60y2u1— Justin Amash (@justinamash) April 17, 2026