Let's have more action, less talk on making elections safe

This week, Homeland Security Secretary Kristjen Nielsen called for “verifiable and auditable” voting systems in states by the next presidential election in 2020. That’s a great plan, but upgrades cost money and it’s unclear where funding will come from.

It’s true that the U.S. election infrastructure is vulnerable to a range of attacks and that there are numerous foreign actors, including Russia, that would like to exploit those vulnerabilities. Upgrades and new equipment would give greater protection and accountability to elections. Although not a panacea, they would bolster security and add to voter confidence.