Joe Manchin

If we do not at least provide some help to our folks to support jobs at home, then we are going to get crushed.

You cannot bring a pea-shooter to a gunfight.

RT, the Russian state news organization that Federal intelligence officials call the Kremlin's principal international propaganda outlet, RT America TV broadcasts negative programs, derogatory information about the United States.

I wish that your CEOs would be here. They need to answer for this. It can't be a business model. It's got to be a security issue.

What you're doing by allowing this fake stuff to come across, this misleading, this damaging information, is really threatening the security and the sovereignty of our nation.

This is not a Democrat or Republican issue. This is an American issue that we're concerned about, the security of our Nation.

According to an Oxford University study released in October, Russian trolls are now targeting American military personnel and veterans on Twitter and Facebook.

Are you or your CEOs concerned about the threat and damage your companies can do to the U.S. with your far-reaching power?

Do you have any doubts at all that Russia intervened, interfered, had a profound outcome, basically, on our outcome to our election?

The Kremlin spends $190 million a year on the distribution and dissemination of RT programming.

It's essentially information warfare directed against the United States.

A secret deterrent is not a deterrent. The world has to know what we can do.

I think it is a step in the right direction and I understand the panel agrees.

If you are not allowed to ever punch back, you are going to lose the fight.

Part of the answer has to be a deterrent strategy or doctrine that is well known across the world.

Well, I was just going to say you all come from the technical end of it and can really help us there and advocate for this because I see a lot needs to be done.

I could, if I wanted to do some kind of criminal act, I could walk up to it and make it happen.

And you say that can be retrofitted also on this?

I am on Intel and every meeting we have deals with cyber and some type of cyberattacks that we are getting regularly and how we can stave that off.

And then finally, if you are asked by the President to render your assessment and evaluation, do you feel confident you can speak truth to power?

Not that you need more money, even though everybody needs more money.

First of all, the most important: What do you think is the greatest security risk that the United States of America faces?

I appreciate that. And the fact that you served as Inspector General at a variety of levels, maybe you might want to explain how that prepared you for the job that we're asking you to do or that you're asking us to confirm you to do.

Do you feel--I'm sure you looked at the budget now. Are you siloed? Are you able to move money to where you know the critical need is?

Let us know if we can help.