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OVERNIGHT TECH: Senators head home with cybersecurity on the ropes
The Lede: After more than two years of work, Sen. Joe Lieberman's (I-Conn.) Cybersecurity Act suffered an apparently fatal blow in the Senate on Thursday when the bill's supporters were unable to muster the votes needed to overcome a Republican filibuster.
The final vote was 52-46, but 60 votes were needed to move the legislation forward.
The Senate later voted to break for its August recess.
Members on both sides of the aisle held out hope that cybersecurity could be revived come September, when the Senate returns from its break.
"Hopefully we can put all this behind us and go forward in a positive way, which everyone on our side wants to do and everyone on their side wants to do," Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) said.
"Sen. [Harry] Reid [(D-Nev.)] has said, and he's been very steadfast about this, if both sides can come up with a finite list of germane and relevant amendments to the topic of cybersecurity, he will bring it up," Lieberman said.
The bill has been Lieberman's top priority before he retires from the Senate at the end of the year.
White House press secretary Jay Carney called the vote a "profound disappointment."
"The politics of obstructionism, driven by special interest groups seeking to avoid accountability, prevented Congress from passing legislation to better protect our nation from potentially catastrophic cyber-attacks," Carney said in a statement.
In the wake of the bill's defeat, House Republicans urged the Senate to take up the House's Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA).
"Now, the course of action that makes the most sense is for the Senate to pass the four cybersecurity bills that passed the House nearly four months ago," Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) said in a statement. "We have an obligation to the American people to at least start updating our laws to help protect the nation."
House Intelligence Committee Chairman and CISPA author Mike Rogers (R-Mich.) claimed there is strong support in both chambers for legislation like CISPA.
"The Senate needs to get back to work, set aside the issues we don’t yet have consensus on, and pass an information-sharing bill,” Rogers said.
But the White House has threatened to veto CISPA over concerns that it would undermine privacy and fail to protect critical infrastructure.
Lieberman suggested Thursday that he would be open to allowing CISPA to come to the Senate, but only if lawmakers could make serious revisions to it. He emphasized that the decision would be up to Reid.
AT&T strikes spectrum deal: AT&T agreed on Thursday to buy NextWave wireless for $600 million.
The deal, which is subject to approval by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), would give AT&T access to more spectrum to enhance its wireless network.
Consumer group Public Knowledge acknowledged that AT&T would put the spectrum to better use than NextWave, which wasn't using it. But the group claimed spectrum policy is broken, allowing the two largest firms, AT&T and Verizon, to consolidate their control of the airwaves.
FCC launches broadcaster database: The FCC launched its online database of broadcasters' files on Thursday.
The site includes information about recent political ad buys, and watchdog groups hope it will shed light on the money behind political ad campaigns.
Although broadcasters were previously required to compile the information, it is the first time that the information has been disclosed online.
Broadcasters are suing the FCC over the rule, claiming that it is burdensome and allows their competitors in satellite and cable to gain unfair insight into their ad pricing.
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Cybersecurity Act fails Senate vote
White House: GOP sided with special interests over national security on cyber vote
Senators hold out hope that cybersecurity bill can be revived
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