Cyber Diplomacy Act of 2021

Floor Speech

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Mr. McCAUL. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I am pleased the House is considering the Cyber Diplomacy Act that I reintroduced this Congress with Chairman Meeks and a strong roster of bipartisan cosponsors. I also want to thank my good friend from Rhode Island (Mr. Langevin), my co-chair on the Congressional Cybersecurity Caucus. Over the past decade, he and I have worked very hard to advance critical cyber legislation like the law that set up the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency at the Department of Homeland Security.

With today's bill, we are taking the protection provided by CISA to the United States to the international stage and, as the chairman mentioned, providing rules of the road, which we do not have today.

The United States has strategic and economic interests in ensuring the internet remains open, reliable, and secure around the world. Unfortunately, not all governments agree.

For example, Russia and China are aggressively promoting their vision of ``cyber sovereignty,'' which emphasizes state control over cyberspace and tramples individual freedoms. That is why the United States and our allies must be prepared to advance our own vision for cyberspace.

The Cyber Diplomacy Act gives the State Department the necessary tools to work with our allies and partners to stop the spread of misinformation, to stop the cyberattacks, and to stop the imposition of their so-called cyber security.

Madam Speaker, a new ambassador will be given the authority to establish critical cyber norms and standards that do not exist today to help define what is good behavior and what is bad.

Let me say that when the SolarWinds attack occurred, in the past, there were no consequences to bad behavior with the Russians or the Chinese, and I was very supportive and proud that President Biden struck back with sanctions against Russia for this bad behavior. That is what this office is really all about.

Without these clear guidelines, it is not possible to mount a strong response to our adversaries' destructive behavior. This bill is long overdue. To me, it is the last piece in terms of our cyber role in the Federal Government, now taking it to the international stage with our allies around the world.

Madam Speaker, again, I want to thank Chairman Meeks, Mr. Langevin, and all of the bipartisan cosponsors. The recent high-profile attacks remind us that what happens in cyberspace is vitally important to the United States and our allies and partners around the world. This act will enhance our ability to protect and promote our national security, our ability to compete, and the freedoms and ideals America represents to the world.

A decade ago, we had to determine what is the cyber role--or maybe even 15--what the role is of the Federal Government. We knew the Department of Defense and NSA had great offensive capabilities. We needed a civilian agency to work with the private sector to share threat information, and that became the beginning of the cybersecurity agency at the Department of Homeland Security. And, of course, the FBI investigates. But we have never had any international norms or standards or, as the chairman said, the rules of the road.

This bill, as I said, is long overdue. The Russians influenced our elections. There are, finally, sanctions against them. But before that, few consequences occurred. When the Chinese stole 23 million security clearances, including my own, there was zero response from the United States of America.

When these attacks occurred, and when our intellectual property has been stolen, so much so that Keith Alexander, the NSA Director, said it was the ``greatest transfer of wealth in human history,'' with no consequence, we finally shut down the Chinese consulate in Houston because of the tremendous theft of intellectual property through the Texas Medical Center in my home State, including research and development on the vaccine. Then there was a Texas A&M professor being indicted for espionage for giving NASA data to the Chinese. This has to stop.

This act, this cyber diplomacy bill, will ensure that, at the international level, the United States is respected and that we are going to work with our allies to provide the norms and standards that are so desperately needed to better protect our interests and the interests of our allies.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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