Pressure grows on McConnell for special Russia hacking probe
Sen. Cory Gardner plans to introduce legislation to create a select committee to investigate an array of cybersecurity threats.
Those are the headline and the sub-head of an article in Politico today, Dec. 20, 2016. The first two paragraphs are:
John McCain and Lindsey Graham's bipartisan push to create a special committee to investigate Russia's election season hacking and other cybersecurity threats received a potential boost Monday as a third GOP senator announced legislation to make their idea a reality.
Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) told POLITICO he would introduce a bill that, iff passed, would mandate a new select Senate committee on cybersecurity. The move could intensify pressure on Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who so far has resisted appointing a select committee on cybersecurity. He insists the chamber's traditional committees, led by the intelligence panel, should handle the issue.
When Progressive Democrat Mark Udall lost his bid for re-election to Republican Cory Gardner (sob), Not in my wildest dreams, not in a million years, did I ever think that I might have to be grateful to him, or that he had the least smidgen of integrity or the tiniest suggestion of a spine.
I shared the article with the other administrators and editors, and I'm sure that no one is surprised that Lona, who is sharp as the proverbial tack, pointed out that A) he's still a Republican, B) the committee he's proposing is the same one McCain and Graham already proposed, bipartisanly with Democrats Schumer (NY) and Reed (RI) so it's not an original idea, and C) that the events he speaks about having the committee investigate cover such a broad spectrum that they might never get around to Russia. And, of course, she is absolutely right. The bill is kind of a nothingburger, it may never go anywhere, and even if it's passed, the Committee may never go anywhere.
But why I brought up the suggestion of a spine is that McConnell is against it. Outspokenly against it. Even going on record with the appearance of challenging McConnell is noteworthy. McCain and Graham have done so before and didn't surprise anyone, but Gardner is supposed to be "close with McConnell." The casting of his proposal as far broader than Russian hacking was almost certainly addressed to McConnell, but he is still proposing, and writing a bill to propose, something McConnell has emphatically said he does not want.
There are a number of Senators kicking this football around – such as Chuck Grassley (whose attempt to suggest a select committee might be inefficient might be more convincing had it not been for the Benghazi circus), Susan Collins, Angus King, Bob Casey, Debbie Stabenow, and, in fact, the DNC. James Lankford and Bob McCorker (Foreign Relations Committee head) have had their names mentioned, as has Richard Burr, who, as the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, is on the spot. Jeff Flake and Marco Rubio have been quoted.
But for Gardner's name to show up here, and what's more, associated with something McConnell doesn't like – I just have to say that things are getting weirder.
6 Responses to “Pressure grows on McConnell for special Russia hacking probe”
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Cross posted to Care2 at http://www.care2.com/news/member/101612212/4027629
It's a good sign. We're going to need Republicans who are willing to stand up to their own party's leaders, even if there are only a few of them. Remember, when it comes to things like killing Social Security or Medicare, if all the Senate Democrats stick together against it we need only three Republicans to stop it.
SO true. Thank you.
Interesting, JD. In addition to what Lona said, Lindsey-poo and McConJob both have a long history of prepending bipartisanship on an issue and, under the guise of negotiation, foot dragging long enough to kill it. In fact, Lindsey-poo eveb bragged obout using that tactic to keep the public option out of the ACA. If any of the three of them had any integrity at all, they would have been purged by now.
No need for me to comment anymore, is there 😉
Yes, weirdly Gardner may have grown a backbone, but the more I think about it, the more I believe it's a honey trap for Democrats, with McConnell's outspoken opposition against it as a decoy. The more he "dislikes" it, the more Democrats will be willing to adopt it and the committee will be dead in the water before it starts. If anything, it'll investigate only those issues that Republicans favor.
Certainly also a possibility, even a probability. It did drop my jaw though.