Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL) stressed the importance of the United States properly responding to cyberattacks, contending that the nation’s foreign adversaries are not “getting the message.”
Waltz’s comment was in reference to the cyberhack the Library of Congress’s email systems underwent this year. The FBI is investigating the scale of the attack, Fox News has confirmed. The Florida congressman, whom President-elect Donald Trump named his national security adviser, warned that the cyberattack could open the door to other parts of the U.S. government being hacked and said the U.S. cannot “keep playing 100% defense.”
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“We need to start imposing consequences — clearly our adversaries are not getting the message that this has to stop,” Waltz said on Fox News’s Fox & Friends. “And the one that has me most concerned is earlier this year, the cyber threat called volt typhoon, that was exposed from China, which is not just taking data or spying, it’s actually cyber time bombs in our critical infrastructure. So I think we need a broader shift in strategy that will be working with President Trump’s excellent team that he is assembling to put in place.”
Waltz said artificial intelligence is going to play a critical role in cybersecurity and that billionaire and technology entrepreneur Elon Musk will be involved in the race to keep the U.S. leading on the technology front. Musk, who already owns an AI startup called xAI, is already working with the incoming Trump administration with the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency, a commission he will co-head with fellow billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy.
In reflecting on Trump’s last administration, Waltz contended that one error was his Cabinet attempting to conform Trump to the established “policy-making process system.” Waltz argued that the president-elect, this time around, is surrounded by people who do not think they are wiser than him or who would attempt to undermine his presidential duties.
“We are all on board, rowing in the same direction for this America First agenda,” Waltz said. “And I got to tell you, Brian, the excitement amongst the team is palpable. Everybody is fired up and ready to get to work.”
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With Waltz leaving the House to become Trump’s national security adviser, the Constitution requires that vacancies be filled through special elections. Per Florida state law, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) will schedule one in the coming weeks.
Senator Marco Rubio is expected to resign from the Senate to assume duties as Secretary of State when the Trump administration takes power on January 20th, creating a vacancy roughly two months from today.
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) November 18, 2024
We have already received strong interest from several possible…
One seat DeSantis does have authority to appoint a replacement to, however, is that of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), whom Trump nominated for secretary of state. On Monday, DeSantis wrote on X that there has already been “strong interest from several possible candidates” and revealed that he will probably select a replacement “by the beginning of January” 2025.