Chris Collins votes to continue NSA spying on Americans

An amendment to a defense bill that would have ended the NSA's spying on American citizens was defeated in the House earlier this week, and Rep. Chris Collins was among the members who voted against the amendment.

The amendment was introduced by Rep. Justin Amash, from Battle Creek, Mich., and would have de-funded the NSA program, which gathers data from phone companies on phone calls by U.S. citizens in the hope of uncovering terrorist plots.

The Batavian sent an e-mail to Grant Loomis, spokesman for Collins, and asked for a statement on the vote. Loomis said we could attribute the following statement to him:

“Congressman Collins voted to keep in place the same program that for nearly the last decade has saved countless American lives and thwarted terrorists at every turn.”

There is no evidence publicly available that a single terrorist plot has been prevented by the program, known as PRISM.

We asked Loomis what evidence the Congressman had that the program has prevented a terrorist attack, and he responded:

"He has participated in Congressional briefings on the matter. Chris believes the NSA program is in the best interest of our country’s national security and his vote on the matter reflects his position."

The vote was largely symbolic because even if the amendment would have passed in the House, according to a Washington Post story, it certainly would have been stripped from the bill in conference committee with the Senate, but if it didn't, it would have been vetoed by President Obama.