Sheldon Whitehouse

Unless we are willing to share those with fairly large sectors of the private industry, because it is hard to pick winners and losers...

But a domain clears that issue, does it not, by making people aware so that there is consent before you enter it?

I think we have a challenge of making the laws work right, but we are up for that challenge.

I think that construct is starting to work in the way that we had always envisioned it would.

And I will add also a report from the Center for Democracy and Technology entitled 'Cybersecurity: Evaluating the Administration's Proposals,' dated June 21, 2011.

But that said, you do believe that, as time goes forward, this is going to be an increasing threat for the country, an increasing responsibility for law enforcement, and we are going to need increasing resources in order to meet that…

Are you satisfied that the existing resources will do the trick, or do we need to think about scaling up to meet this threat?

You will agree with me that there is an issue that is worth pursuing, though.

Depending on the agency relationship, it could easily become a government act.

I think it was your testimony--actually, I take it back. It was Mr. Baker's--about needing to encourage consumers to be more aware

I am worried about the extent of the threat that we are facing right now and the time that it will take to work through some of the administrative procedures.

We, too, look forward to working with the Department of Justice, to use your words, to improve and amplify the administration's proposals.

The common thread is that these threats all take advantage of our strong reliance on the Internet for social communications, business, and national defense.

I have to assume that the interagency process is sort of an ongoing thing and that there remain discussions going on within the administration on these subjects.

I think the bottom line is that we have--there are resources that could protect private sector critical infrastructure but will not without declassification...

I think we need to bridge that gap, and I do not see how the bill does that.

And Senator Rockefeller and I and others have sent a letter to the SEC asking that they beef this up.

There is a huge disjunction between what is really happening out there and what people know.

We in Congress should presume that the administration intends the ISPs to be in that process

I think where we find agreement we should move things up.

Your partnership and leadership on this issue have been invaluable to me, deeply appreciated both in the work we have done on this issue back in Rhode Island, but nationally here in the Congress.

The administration has proposed allowing RICO to cover crimes committed in cyberspace as well as setting mandatory minimum sentences for intrusions into critical infrastructure.

We must also align our laws and policies with the realities of today's Internet, and I appreciate the administration's proposal to move in this direction.

If there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that it recess under the previous order. There being no objection, the Senate, at 5:37 p.m., recessed until Monday, June 20, 2011, at 2 p.m…

I am advised there will be no rollcall votes on Monday. The next rollcall vote will begin at approximately noon on Tuesday, June 21, on confirmation of the Simon nomination. ____________________