Political Quotes

“Although I strongly oppose H.R. 1, I appreciate the intent of Mr. Lujan's amendment. This amendment would improve the election infrastructure innovation grant program established in H.R. 1 by requiring consultation with the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology. NIST is already working with the Election Assistance Commission to develop voluntary standards and guidelines for voting systems and is well-positioned to support the Department of Homeland Security, the National Science Foundation, and the Commission's election security research efforts. I would like to note that the amendment does not add the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology as a recipient of the report required by section 321(b). I am the ranking member of the Research and Technology Subcommittee, which has jurisdiction over the DHS Science and Technology Directorate, the NSF, and the NIST, all of which are implicated by section 321. Although I do not expect H.R. 1 to ever become law, I hope election security is something that we can do on a bipartisan basis in the future. This process has been rushed, and appropriate due diligence to create strong and effective bipartisan election and security reforms has not been done. Once again, I support the intent of this amendment, but I oppose H.R. 1. Madam Chair, I thank the gentleman, and I yield back the balance of my time.”