E-News From Congressman Murphy
Statement
In This Week's Edition of E-News...
Congress Passes Historic Waste-Cutting Defense Bill
As Unemployment Rises, EPA Sends Taxpayer Dollars to China, UN
Murphy Named to Cybersecurity Task Force
New Crime Fighting Technology Unveiled in Washington County
Congress Passes Historic Waste-Cutting Defense Bill
Today, the House of Representatives passed historic legislation that represented a reversal from yearly increases to the defense budget. The legislation preserved vital national defense programs, gave soldiers a 1.6 percent pay raise, and cut wasteful spending as well as $39 billion from War on Terror activities.
Congressman Murphy supported the measure, which now heads to the Senate for further consideration.
"We can have a strong national defense and find savings at the Department of Defense when our federal government is borrowing forty cents of every dollar it spends," said Rep. Murphy, who voted in favor an additional $17.6 billion in spending cuts.
Continuing with a new rules process for 112th Congress spending bills, the House considered HR 2219 under an "open rules" process. This process gives all legislators the opportunity to bring amendments to the floor for open debate and individual votes. All amendments to spending bills must have a zero net gain. In order to restore or add funding to one area of the budget, an equal amount must be cut from another.
In all 35 amendments to the bill were voted on this week, including an amendment offered by Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-SC) that would freeze the Defense budget at fiscal 2011 levels -- a $17.2 billion savings for taxpayers. The amendment, which Rep. Murphy supported, was not adopted.
Rep. Murphy also backed an amendment offered by Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK) that prohibits the Administration from furnishing military equipment, training, or consultation to assist rebel groups in Libya. The amendment passed by a vote of 225-201.
"Despite numerous requests by Congress, the President has failed to come before Congress and present a case for involvement in Libya," said Congressman Murphy. By passing this amendment to prohibit funding for military involvement, Congress is sending a clear message that we cannot afford to open a new war front without all the details and proper authorization."
The bill also prohibits any transfer of Guantanamo Bay detainees to the United States for trial. Congress has passed a law to prohibit funding for terrorist trials in the United States. Despite this, it was discovered on Wednesday that the Administration will ignore this direction and prosecute in a New York civilian court, Ahmed Abdulkadir Warsame a Somali indicted for supporting Islamic militant groups: the Shabab in Somalia and Al Qaeda in Yemen.
Section 1039 of the House-passed fiscal year 2012 National Defense Authorization Act also explicitly prohibits these types of transfers to the United States.
"Once again, this Administration is acting despite Congressional direction," said Murphy. "Congress has time and time again passed legislation that forbids terrorist trials in local communities. Military commissions traditionally have had jurisdiction when trying enemies of the United States. During the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and in World Wars I and II, military commissions tried those at war with the United States. Since the inception of the Global War on Terror, military commissions have been used to try the networks of unlawful combatants, conspirators, and spies aimed at destroying America and its allies."
As Unemployment Rises, EPA Sends Taxpayer Dollars to China, UN
A report by the House Energy and Commerce Committee has revealed that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has sent $100 million in taxpayer money overseas in the last decade, $27 million since 2009 alone.
The report discovered examples such as $1.5 million going to the United Nations for "cleaner fuels and vehicles" and "electronic waste"; $718,000 to China for air pollution reduction efforts; and over $1 million to India for "air quality/clean fuels." The Committee also discovered discrepancies of up to 3000% between what the EPA reported and what was advertised in press releases, raising further questions about the lack of accountability at the EPA. As a highlighted example, the EPA reported $15,000 for an Indonesian public relations campaign called "Breathe Easy, Jakarta", yet the EPA publicized in a press release that the agency dedicated $450,000 toward the program.
Coming on the heels of news this week that the US economy is still in slump, with a rise in the unemployment rate and a mere 18,000 jobs added in June, Congressman Murphy raised questions about the Executive Branch's economic priorities. Said Murphy, "Some of the taxpayer grants going to foreign governments are for the promotion of energy exploration overseas, while at the same time America maintains a moratorium on our own vast natural resources to spur job creation and reduce our dependence on foreign oil."
Continued Murphy, "China doesn't need a stimulus program. The UN doesn't need a stimulus program, either. This is the latest example of the President talking about job creation while his Administration sends taxpayer dollars overseas where they do no good for our economy. While our economy is struggling and there are 20 million Americans who are out of work or looking for more work, now is the time to invest in our own economy, not the economies of China or India."
Murphy Named to Cybersecurity Task Force
Recent attacks by foreign hackers on computers and networks inside the Department of Defense, electric utilities, and banks have illustrated the vulnerability of the nation's cyber infrastructure. Acting upon the Obama Administration's May 2011 proposal for a new public-private framework to combat cybersecurity threats, Speaker John Boehner last month announced the formation of the House Cybersecurity Task Force to evaluate all aspects of US cybersecurity and report their findings to the whole Congress. Given Congressman Murphy's position as a vice chairman on the Energy and Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over the security of the electric grid, Speaker Boehner tapped Murphy to serve on the Cybersecurity Task Force.
Over the next two months, the group will examine the largest and most complex issues and make recommendations on cybersecurity authorities, information-sharing and public-private partnerships, critical infrastructure, and domestic legal frameworks for combating cyber attacks.
But there is no coordinated effort to protect the private sector, which owns and operates crucial pieces of the nation's infrastructure like the power grid. A new survey conducted by Ponemon research revealed chilling conclusions: 90 percent of the 583 companies surveyed said they had been the victim of a cyber attack within the last year. Even more sobering, and underscoring the need for a strong cyberecurity policy, according to a New York Times report 34 percent of the attacks were traced to China and 19 percent found they originated in Russia.
Russia, China and North Korea are widely believed to have carried out cyber attacks in the past. Russia in particular has been blamed for carrying out a large-scale, coordinated attack on Estonia in 2007, attempting to knock out critical government, communications and banking infrastructure. And the need for the United States to develop a strong framework for preventing, detecting and responding to cyber attacks has been highlighted by recent Congressional hearings investigating the matter. This week, Department of Homeland Security officials admitted at a House Oversight and Government Reform hearing that some American electronic devices with parts manufactured overseas have been predesigned to support cyber attacks.
"America must be prepared to combat growing cyber threats that have the potential to cause enormous damage to our infrastructure, economy and national security," said Murphy. "Our Task Force will be investigating cybersecurity from every angle over the coming weeks and months in order to determine the best and most effective ways to protect ourselves from cyber-terrorists operating in countries that wish to do us harm."
Southwestern Pennsylvania is home to many innovative and successful technology companies. Those Pittsburgh area professionals engaged in the cyber security and technology sector are encouraged to reach out to the Congressman to share their expertise.
New Crime Fighting Technology Unveiled in Washington County
On Monday, Congressman Murphy joined Washington County District Attorney Steve Toprani and local police from Canonsburg, Cecil, South Strabane, North Strabane, and the Washington County sheriff's office to announce the acquisition of powerful new crime fighting technology made possible with a $220,000 grant Murphy helped secure.
South Strabane Police Chief Donald Zofchak discusses the merits of the new ALPR technology being received by Washington County.
The technology, known as Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR), consists of cameras mounted on police patrol cars that are able to automatically scan license plates in the vicinity and transmit the data to a central server. This process allows the system to read thousands of license plates in a matter of seconds and compare the data with known suspected vehicles, a process that used to take hours by traditional law enforcement methods. The ALPR technology will allow police officers to quickly assess threats and combat narcotics traffickers and known felons.
"The ALPR technology will give our law enforcement another powerful weapon to prevent criminal activity in our local communities," said Congressman Murphy. "The cooperation and collaboration of the Washington County District Attorney's office and the towns implementing the system will be instrumental in keeping our communities safe and secure for law-abiding citizens. I'd like to thank District Attorney Toprani and all our law enforcement officials for their leadership and tireless efforts to keep criminals off our streets."
Six Washington County law enforcement agencies will be receiving the ALPR system. These agencies were selected for the program because of their location along Route 19, a highly traveled artery through the county's emerging population center.
Calling the ALPR system the "most significant technological advancement our county ever received," DA Toprani said that "this technology has been tried and tested in the nation's most populated areas. By sharing resources and data on a multi-jurisdictional scale, Washington County now leads Pennsylvania in protecting its citizens."
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