August 2, 2012

 Washington, D.C.—Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid issued the following statement after Senate Republicans overwhelmingly voted to block a bill that would have protected our nation’s critical infrastructure from cyber attacks. Republicans blocked the Cybersecurity Act of 2012 by a vote of 52-46.

“National security experts from the military, intelligence, and law enforcement communities – on a bipartisan basis – have recognized the imminent threat of cyber-attack by our adversaries against our nation’s critical infrastructure. A cyber-attack coming from anywhere in the world could cause widespread blackouts throughout our nation or target the safeguards at our nuclear power plants, and right now there is little we can do to prevent it. The only people who have not yet awakened to the seriousness of the threat appear to be Senate Republicans. Despite a unanimous chorus of national security leaders demanding urgent action, Republicans recklessly obstructed cyber security legislation today, filibustering it with irrelevant, political amendments that serve no purpose other than catering to the Tea Party.

“I am extremely disappointed Republicans derailed a critical national security bill we have been working on for the past three years. More disturbing is that Republicans have shown they are willing to put partisan politics and narrow corporate interests above this nation’s security. Democrats will not give up trying to protect our national security, and we will continue working to solve this vital issue for our nation.”