House lawmakers voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday in favor of deepening collaboration with the Israeli government to strengthen the cybersecurity defenses of both countries on Tuesday.
Reps. John Ratcliffe, R-Texas, and Jim Langevin, D-R.I., gained broad bipartisan support for a pair of bills they introduced to provide federal funding for cybersecurity research conducted jointly in the United States and Israel. The first bill passed by voice vote under a suspension of the rules reserved for non-controversial legislation, while the second bill passed in a voice later later the same evening.
The cybersecurity bills have the practical and diplomatic significance of forging another connection with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, which clashed with the Obama administration over the nuclear deal with Iran — a regime that launched cyber attacks on the State Department following the resolution of the Iran deal.
“Our recent discussions with Prime Minister Netanyahu confirmed just how important it is that we unite forces to formulate ongoing, effective strategies to best address the rapidly evolving cyber threats faced by both of our nations,” Ratcliffe said when he introduced the bills following a Juy trip with Langevin to Israel. “After all, cybersecurity is national security, and we must be doing everything we can to fortify ourselves from the very real dangers posed by malicious cyber actors.”
Langevin emphasized that attacks on Israel can double as attacks on the United States, as well, given the nature of Internet warfare. “A cyber threat against Israel can easily migrate to the United States or vice versa and there is no Internet Border Patrol, if you will, that will preemptively stop it from spreading,” the Rhode Island Democrat said.
In response, the lawmakers hope to promote research in the private and public sector. The United States-Israel Cybersecurity Cooperation Enhancement Act, which passed by voice vote, focuses on the private side by expanding a pilot program that funds research projects by private Israeli and American companies. “This bill helps ensure that innovative technologies will make it to market that are responsive to the needs of our DHS cybersecurity professionals,” Langevin said.
With the second bill, lawmakers proposed creating a grant program to fund research conducted jointly by the Department of Homeland Security and the Israeli Ministry of Public Security. Neither legislation provoked controversy — only one lawmaker Texas Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, joined the debate over the legislation, and she spoke in favor of both.
In addition to the merits of the legislation, frustration of Russian-linked hacks of the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign might have facilitated Democratic support for the proposals.
“In the backdrop of seeing technology impact the recent election, I think that we clearly know that we have these duties,” Jackson Lee said. “We have to be thorough and we have to make sure that systems work and systems are protected.”
