Sen. Rand Paul Randal (Rand) Howard PaulThe Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by Facebook - Trump previews SCOTUS nominee as 'totally brilliant' Rand Paul says he can't judge 'guilt or innocence' in Breonna Taylor case Overnight Health Care: Health officials tell public to trust in science | Despair at CDC under Trump influence | A new vaccine phase 3 trial starts MORE (R-Ky.) on Wednesday expressed misgivings about President Trump Donald John TrumpSteele Dossier sub-source was subject of FBI counterintelligence probe Pelosi slams Trump executive order on pre-existing conditions: It 'isn't worth the paper it's signed on' Trump 'no longer angry' at Romney because of Supreme Court stance MORE’s nominee to serve as director of national intelligence, Rep. John Ratcliffe John Lee RatcliffeHillicon Valley: Subpoenas for Facebook, Google and Twitter on the cards | Wray rebuffs mail-in voting conspiracies | Reps. raise mass surveillance concerns Bipartisan representatives demand answers on expired surveillance programs Democrats call for declassifying election threats after briefing by Trump officials MORE (R-Texas), calling his record on surveillance “very worrisome.”

Paul said he hadn’t made a “final conclusion” on Trump’s decision to tap Ratcliffe to replace outgoing Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats Daniel (Dan) Ray CoatsFBI chief says Russia is trying to interfere in election to undermine Biden The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by The Air Line Pilots Association - Trump, Biden renew push for Latino support Former Intel chief had 'deep suspicions' that Putin 'had something on Trump': book MORE, but said he was worried about the Republican congressman’s voting record related to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

“It sounds like he’s been a proponent of more power to the FISA court, he’s been a proponent of warrantless searches,” Paul told The Hill when asked about Ratcliffe’s nomination Wednesday.

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Though he didn’t offer specifics, Paul appeared to be referring to Ratcliffe’s decision to join a group of bipartisan House lawmakers in voting against privacy reforms to the intelligence community’s collection powers under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act last year.

The provision allows the National Security Agency to conduct surveillance on non-American targets outside the United States without a warrant, including in cases when the targets communicate with Americans. The Senate voted to extend the program in January 2018 after Paul and others tried unsuccessfully to filibuster it.

Proponents of the program argue it is in the interest of national security and keeps Americans safe. But critics like Paul and civil liberties advocates have pushed for reform, sounding the alarm over the so-called backdoor search loophole that allows federal investigators to sift through data incidentally collected on Americans.

“We’ve been advocating for years that we need more protection for Americans,” Paul said Wednesday. “The Fourth Amendment needs to be applied more consistently throughout the intelligence community. We want more restrictions on FBI looking at FISA data that’s been obtained without a warrant for Americans.”

“My first impression is [Ratcliffe] seems to be coming from a different point of view, which is worrisome. I haven’t made a final conclusion, but I can tell you that our initial look is very, very worrisome,” Paul added.

Ratcliffe, who has a background in law enforcement as a former federal prosecutor, has raised concerns about FISA abuses in connection with the FBI investigation into the Trump campaign’s ties to Russia.

In particular, Ratcliffe and other Republicans have suggested the FBI abused its authorities in applying for a warrant to surveil former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page by using research compiled by Christopher Steele, the author of a controversial Trump-Russia dossier.

Critics say Republicans have raised the accusations in order to undermine former special counsel Robert Mueller Robert (Bob) MuellerCNN's Toobin warns McCabe is in 'perilous condition' with emboldened Trump CNN anchor rips Trump over Stone while evoking Clinton-Lynch tarmac meeting The Hill's 12:30 Report: New Hampshire fallout MORE’s Russia investigation.

The Justice Department inspector general is reviewing whether the FBI followed appropriate rules in applying for the Page warrant, and his report is expected to be released in the near future. Attorney General William Barr Bill BarrHillicon Valley: Subpoenas for Facebook, Google and Twitter on the cards | Wray rebuffs mail-in voting conspiracies | Reps. raise mass surveillance concerns Bipartisan representatives demand answers on expired surveillance programs YouTube to battle mail-in voting misinformation with info panel on videos MORE has also opened a separate inquiry into what he has termed “spying” on the Trump campaign.

Since Trump announced plans to nominate him to the top intelligence post, Ratcliffe has come under scrutiny for his critique of the Russia probe. Democrats have argued he is too political for the role, and others have raised concerns about his lack of national security experience when compared to past nominees.

His backers have argued his law enforcement background and work in Congress — Ratcliffe is a member of the House Intelligence Committee — have prepared him adequately for the job.

Paul said Wednesday that he believes Trump was “abused by the intelligence community” but that he favors a nominee for director of national intelligence who “understands that it’s not just about President Trump.”

“I think there’s great danger to politics in general or to people who are political activists if we use the intelligence community to look at their phone calls and listen to them,” Paul said.

“I’m more worried about that than whether or not he’s a loyalist to the president because I think it takes someone who thinks maybe the president was abused, it takes someone who can generalize that to say, hey, I’m for really protecting all Americans from an overzealous intelligence community, and I’m not so sure his record reflects that.”

Paul added that he would look “very carefully” at the nomination and didn’t want to make a “snap decision.”

Ratcliffe's office did not offer comment for this article.

Ratcliffe is somewhat of an unknown figure in the Senate at this stage, and some Republicans say they will reserve judgment until they know more about him. Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr Richard Mauze BurrHillicon Valley: Subpoenas for Facebook, Google and Twitter on the cards | Wray rebuffs mail-in voting conspiracies | Reps. raise mass surveillance concerns Bipartisan representatives demand answers on expired surveillance programs Rep. Mark Walker says he's been contacted about Liberty University vacancy MORE (R-N.C.) said earlier this week he would work to move Ratcliffe’s nomination “swiftly through regular order” once Trump officially taps him for the position.

Trump announced Sunday that Coats would leave his position on Aug. 15, capping months of speculation that the intelligence chief was on his way out, and that he had chosen Ratcliffe to replace him.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Addison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellTrump 'no longer angry' at Romney because of Supreme Court stance On The Money: Anxious Democrats push for vote on COVID-19 aid | Pelosi, Mnuchin ready to restart talks | Weekly jobless claims increase | Senate treads close to shutdown deadline The Hill's Campaign Report: Trump faces backlash after not committing to peaceful transition of power MORE (R-Ky.) and others have expressed disappointment at Coats’s departure.

Paul opposed Coats, a former Republican senator from Indiana, who was approved in a 85-12 vote in the Senate in 2017.