[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 151 (Thursday, September 19, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Page S5587]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                           Election Security

  Mr. President, there is another bright spot, election security. This 
morning, after months and months of Republican resistance and months of 
insistent Democratic pressure, Senate Republicans have finally agreed 
to support our Democratic request for additional election security 
funding in advance of the 2020 elections.
  This is similar to an amendment Democrats offered during last year's 
appropriations process to help States harden their election 
infrastructure to protect against Russian or Chinese or Iranian 
interference.
  A year ago, our Republican friends, unfortunately and shortsightedly, 
rejected this amendment. Maybe, just maybe, Republicans are starting to 
come around to our view that election security is necessary; that if 
Americans don't believe their elections are on the up and up, woe is us 
as a country and as a democracy.
  It is not all the money we requested and doesn't include a single 
solitary reform that virtually everyone knows we need, but it is a 
start. Leader McConnell kept saying that we don't need the money. I 
made umpteen speeches here, in this chair, and the Republican leader 
denied the need. But now, thank God, he has seen the light. We need 
more money for election security; ask election officials, Democrat or 
Republican, throughout the country. I hope today's vote means Senate 
Republicans are beginning to see the light on election security.
  While this funding is important, it is not the only thing we need to 
do to secure our elections from Russian, Chinese, Iranian, or any other 
foreign country's interference. There are multiple bipartisan pieces of 
legislation awaiting action on the floor that would counter foreign 
influence operations against our democracy, safeguard our elections, 
and deter foreign adversaries from even attempting to interfere.
  We have been warned time and again by our national security leaders--
nearly all of them Republicans appointed by President Trump--that China 
and, of course, Russia are potential threats in 2020. We cannot sit on 
our hands while our adversaries try to replicate and outdo what Putin 
accomplished in 2016.
  Leader McConnell should bring the bipartisan bills. We are getting 
the money in approps, but we need more legislation to refine where the 
dollars are.
  Leader McConnell, now that you have seen the light on the money, go 
one step further: Bring the bipartisan bills--the Defending American 
Security from Kremlin Aggression Act, the Secure Elections Act, and the 
DETER Act--to the floor for a debate and a vote. Otherwise, the job 
will remain incomplete and our democracy vulnerable.