Political Quotes

“Madam President, we are talking about the National Defense Authorization Act. We are talking about preventing and dealing with threats to our country. I want to describe a hypothetical threat--a threat that throws millions of people out of work almost overnight. It causes the stock market to collapse. It cripples the airline industry. It has people afraid to leave their homes and States scrambling for materials to prepare and cope with the attack. The attack comes in waves. Just as it seems to be receding, it comes back. It is difficult to know the sources of the attack. The country is divided. There are conspiracy theories and polarization and politicization of this awful situation. I am not describing the pandemic. That is what we have experienced. I am describing a potential, catastrophic cyber attack on this country. Everything that I listed would be part of what would happen in the case of such an attack, plus our networks would likely be down--no more working from home, no Zoom, no meetings. The effect on the economy would be twice, at least, the effect of the coronavirus. The electric grid could likely be compromised. The electric grid-- people think about the lights, but in the South, electricity is necessary for air-conditioning. In the North, electricity is necessary for firing oil and gas-fired furnaces. We are talking about no air- conditioning and no heat. It could be in the dead of winter. We are talking about airports closed.…”