Senate Proposal Gives President Authority Over Internet

(AP)

Internet companies and civil liberties groups were alarmed this spring when a U.S. Senate bill proposed handing the White House the power to disconnect private-sector computers from the Internet.

They're not much happier about a revised version that aides to Sen. Jay Rockefeller, a West Virginia Democrat, have spent months drafting behind closed doors. CBSNews.com has obtained a copy of the 55-page draft of S.773 (excerpt), which still appears to permit the president to seize temporary control of private sector networks during a so-called cybersecurity emergency.

The new version allows the president to "declare a cybersecurity emergency" relating to "non-governmental" computer networks and do what's necessary to respond to the threat. Other sections of the proposal include a federal certification program for "cybersecurity professionals," and a requirement that certain computer systems and networks in the private sector be managed by people who have been awarded that license.

"I think the redraft, while improved, remains troubling due to its vagueness," says Larry Clinton, president of the Internet Security Alliance, which counts representatives of Verizon, Verisign, Nortel, and Carnegie Mellon University on its board. "It is unclear what authority Sen. Rockefeller thinks is necessary over the private sector. Unless this is clarified, we cannot properly analyze, let alone support the bill."

Representatives of other large Internet and telecommunications companies expressed concerns about the bill in a teleconference with Rockefeller's aides this week, but were not immediately available for interviews on Thursday.

A spokesman for Rockefeller also declined to comment on the record on Thursday, saying that many people were unavailable because of the summer recess. A Senate source familiar with the bill compared the president's power to take control of portions of the Internet to what President Bush did when grounding all aircraft on September 11. The source said that one primary concern was the electrical grid, and what would happen if it were attacked from a broadband connection.

When Rockefeller, the chairman of the Senate Commerce committee, and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) introduced the original bill in April, they claimed it was vital to protect national cybersecurity. "We must protect our critical infrastructure at all costs -- from our water to our electricity, to banking, traffic lights and electronic health records," Rockefeller said.

The Rockefeller proposal plays out against a broader concern in Washington, D.C. about the government's role in cybersecurity. In May, President Obama acknowledged that the government is "not as prepared" as it should be to respond to disruptions and announced that a new cybersecurity coordinator position would be created inside the White House staff. Three months later, that post remains empty, one top cybersecurity aide has quit, and some wags have begun to wonder why a government that receives failing marks on cybersecurity should be trusted to instruct the private sector what to do.

Rockefeller's revised legislation seeks to reshuffle the way the federal government addresses the topic. It requires a "cybersecurity workforce plan" from every federal agency, a "dashboard" pilot project, measurements of hiring effectiveness, and the implementation of a "comprehensive national cybersecurity strategy" in six months -- even though its mandatory legal review will take a year to complete.

The privacy implications of sweeping changes implemented before the legal review is finished worry Lee Tien, a senior staff attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation in San Francisco. "As soon as you're saying that the federal government is going to be exercising this kind of power over private networks, it's going to be a really big issue," he says.

Probably the most controversial language begins in Section 201, which permits the president to "direct the national response to the cyber threat" if necessary for "the national defense and security." The White House is supposed to engage in "periodic mapping" of private networks deemed to be critical, and those companies "shall share" requested information with the federal government. ("Cyber" is defined as anything having to do with the Internet, telecommunications, computers, or computer networks.)

"The language has changed but it doesn't contain any real additional limits," EFF's Tien says. "It simply switches the more direct and obvious language they had originally to the more ambiguous (version)... The designation of what is a critical infrastructure system or network as far as I can tell has no specific process. There's no provision for any administrative process or review. That's where the problems seem to start. And then you have the amorphous powers that go along with it."

Translation: If your company is deemed "critical," a new set of regulations kick in involving who you can hire, what information you must disclose, and when the government would exercise control over your computers or network.

The Internet Security Alliance's Clinton adds that his group is "supportive of increased federal involvement to enhance cyber security, but we believe that the wrong approach, as embodied in this bill as introduced, will be counterproductive both from an national economic and national secuity perspective."

Update 8/28 6:14 p.m. ET: I just talked to Jena Longo, deputy communications director for the Senate Commerce committee, on the phone. She sent me e-mail with this statement:

The President of the United States has always had the Constitutional authority, and duty, to protect the American people and direct the national response to any emergency that threatens the security and safety of the United States. The Rockefeller-Snowe Cybersecurity bill makes it clear that the President's authority includes securing our national cyber infrastructure from attack. The section of the bill that addresses this issue, applies specifically to the national response to a severe attack or natural disaster. This particular legislative language is based on longstanding statutory authorities for wartime use of communications networks. To be very clear, the Rockefeller-Snowe bill will not empower a "government shut down or takeover of the internet" and any suggestion otherwise is misleading and false. The purpose of this language is to clarify how the President directs the public-private response to a crisis, secure our economy and safeguard our financial networks, protect the American people, their privacy and civil liberties, and coordinate the government's response.

Unfortunately, I'm still waiting for an on-the-record answer to these four questions that I asked her colleague on Wednesday. I'll let you know if and when I get a response.

---

Declan McCullagh is a correspondent for CBSNews.com. He can be reached at [e-mail]. You can bookmark the Taking Liberties site here, or subscribe to the RSS feed.

[James_Texas]

Obama and his Czars along with the Democrats, Liberals, Communists & Marxists in congress know they must silence the masses to complete the "transformation" of America Obama promised. The have other legislation in queue that will be used to silence conservative television & radio. Listen to Glenn Beck and the truth before he too is silenced!

[ImALibertarian]

People in the IT/Communications business realize that this whole thing is a scam that is completely unnecessary to protect security or anything else. I can understand though how it can be passed by a bipartisan legislature for two reasons:
1. Most of our representatives have no clue how the internet and it's providers, managers and facilitators operate.
2. There's not a dimes worth of philosophical difference between Democrats and Republicans. Neither of them care that the first amendment limits their authority over free speech with only five words...
"Congress Shall Pass NO Law." If we were still a nation of laws, the first step of an honest effort to abridge free speech would be to offer an amendment that either revised or repealed the first amendment.

Based on what's happened in the federal government over the last 30 years, I'm becoming convinced that its bankruptcy may not be such a bad thing.

[drsuz]

The purpose of this language is to clarify how the President directs the public-private response to a crisis, secure our economy and safeguard our financial networks, protect the American people, their privacy and civil liberties, and coordinate the government's response.


Sure, just post something against Obama and he will shut down your computer.

[mordyo]

If this President assumes the power to control what knowledge I may or may not have, if he even takes one more step towards this HE MUST BE IMPEACHED.

I call for Sen. Rockefeller to be IMPEACHED IMMEDIATELY for moving to violate the rights to accumulate knowledge.

ANY MEMBER OF THE HOUSE OR SENATE WHO VOTES FOR THIS MUST BE REMOVED FROM OFFICE ASAP!!

WHO IS WITH ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[the_majesty]

Here is what the American people think of Obama.
Rasmussen Reports Aug 30,2009 --- Most accurate poll ---
ONLY 32% of the American voters approve of the job Obama is doing.
Obama'a overall approval rating is at an alltime low 47%.
Please don't take my word for it. Check for yourself.

[barbaram99]

We have free press. Ben Franklin founded that.
They don't have large print typewritters in stores.
I use Word for that.
I find it appalling that the govt has gotten so big and controling that it lost sight of the constution that the fathers wrote and put safe gaurds in place so this would not happen.
Years ago we wrote on paper with pen..the sighted
Us blind use talking things, Some read Braille whitch I can't use.
Congress needs to read the constution as no one person is to have complete cobtrol. My late father he derved in the 50s the military and the America I grew up and loved and proud of. This is not the same America. Us older folke 'member that America. We don't want a police dtate. They want complete control. The patriot act is so wrong as it goes against the constution, The book 1984 comes to mind. I read that nook years ago on talking books. It was an awful book. I was appalled. America is falling and I am so scared that her leaders are so blind to let it happen.Someone said America wake up. America is we the people, by the people and for the people is my saying. There is 3 branches of the govt not one. bush started this mess out of his fear, As a nation we need to go back to the vision of the framers of the US constution as they want for this nation.

[the_majesty]

I hope more people now understand why our Forefathers gave us
the Second Amendment. Without that Right we could lose all others.
The American people must not allow any infringement on the
Second Amendment. ZERO - NONE

[the_majesty]

At the dawn of the Barack Obama era, the promise of hope has faded.
America's public square is an angry and bitter place. Finger-pointing
and yelling at town hall meetings are signs of a country thats building
toward a boiling point.I think it is fair to say that Barack Obama is
not what America needs to bring this country back together. Now that
the Obama government has started a take over, things will only get worse.

[thomdd1959]

The oath of office for all our government and military personnel is to protect our beloved Constitution of the U.S.A. against ALL Enemies Foreign and Domestic!

Do we still have Integrity, Honesty and Truthfulness left in our government? What has happened? Why have our standards been lowered so far down to current embarrassing levels?

One TRILLION 200 BILLION Dollars Has Just Vanished !

This is OUR MONEY!!! It belongs to ?We the People?!!!

I want to know the truth now! Did Ben Bernanke embezzle our money by himself? Who is Involved? Tim Geithner? Nancy Pelosi? How many people are involved? How long has this been going on?

The Rockefeller / JP Morgan gang and others declared WAR on the United States of America many years ago! This Criminal Banking Cartel gang are riding around in OUR Limousines and flying in OUR Gulf Streams and living in Our Mansions! Everything this gang has, they stole from We the People! Not only that, but they want to ?Lord it over U.S.? They want to control U.S.! They spend OUR MONEY! We want it all BACK NOW! With Interest! The Rockefeller?s are thieves!

Now they want to control our Internet! Jay Rockefeller, a West Virginia Democrat, has spent months drafting behind closed doors. He is another Rockefeller ?sneak?! He attacks the U.S.A. with cyber security bill S 773.

http://www.tomdavidd.com/blog/

America is Awake! We know we are being sacked and looted! Why is our government secretly moving OUR money to the IMF? Remember our National Sovereignty!!!

[acts2_38]

Wake up America your country needs you! The second American revolution has already begun. This is a war between governmental control and individual liberty, communism and the constitution, corporations against the average American, so it is the duty of every freedom loving American to stand up and be counted, to push back the darkness that is closing in on us all.

When you look at the lives lost on "the war on terror" each year as compared to the lives lost from people smoking each year, you soon realize the war on terror is almost non existent. Doesn't mean that they wont make more war to further this agenda of total control though...