Bipartisan Congressional Bills to Defend Against Cyberattacks and other Russian Machinations and to Support the Rule of Law

There are several bipartisan bills that have been introduced in the majority Republican United States Congress to uphold American sovereignty and independence by defending elections against foreign interference and to defend the rule of law. 

The authoritarian and kleptocratic Russian Federation regime of Vladimir Putin successfully interfered in the 2016 Republican presidential Primary and General Elections to elect Donald Trump President.  Trump has repeatedly threatened to force the firing of the Special Counsel who is investigating Russia’s interference in the U.S. election and the Trump campaign’s possible conspiracy with it.

Last year, the Republican-led Congress overwhelmingly passed punitive economic sanctions on Russia, over Trump’s objection.  This year, it also prohibited recognition of the Russian annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, also over Trump’s objection.  The Cybersecurity Infrastructure and Security Agency Act of 2017 passed, in slightly different versions, the House and Senate and is now in conference.  It coordinates the federal response to cyberattacks in terms of command.  However, in addition to giving final approval to this bill, much more is necessary to defend against Russian machinations and cyberattacks by Russia or other hostile actors, like Iran, North Korea, China, Islamist terrorists or “hacktivists.”

Although Congress has completed its legislative session, there could be a lame duck session after the November 6 General Election.  Otherwise, the bills would have to be reintroduced in the next Congress in January.  Nevertheless, building momentum for support of them now can lead to their passage then.

In addition to other related bills, there are two such bills that have been introduced only in the Senate that are particularly worthy of support.  The Defending American Security from Kremlin Aggression Act would punish the Russian Federation for interference in the U.S. presidential election in 2016, establish further sanctions to deter foreign interference in American elections, and address Russian responsibility for the use of chemical weapons by its Syrian ally and require the State Department to determine whether Russia should be added to its list of state sponsors of terrorism, among other provisions.  The Protect Our Elections Act would prohibit foreign ownership or control of election service providers and require and requiring such providers to conduct annual audits of foreign ownership or control.

There are three such bills, among others, that have been introduced in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.  The Honest Ads Act would require all political advertisements on the Internet over a certain minimal monetary value to express who paid for the ad, consistent with the requirement for print and television ads.  Russians had purchased ads on the Internet to influence the 2016 election without disclosing they had paid for them.  The Secure Elections Act would foster coordination between the federal and state governments in regard to cyberattacks on the elections process and require states to defend against such attacks by enabling voting machines to be audited.  A bipartisan commission in Pennsylvania last month recommended the replacement of all voting machines that do not have paper backup.  The Special Counsel Independence and Integrity Act would prevent the unjust firing of the Special Counsel investigating Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.  It would uphold the rule of law by eliminating partisanship from federal criminal prosecutions.

Pennsylvania’s U.S. Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick and Ryan Costello are among the Republican co-sponsors of the Honest Ads Act and the Special Counsel Independence and Integrity Act.  Former Rep. Charlie Dent, a Republican from Pennsylvania, was the author of the latter bill.  Rep. Fitzpatrick also is the author of a bill to require the Internal Revenue Service to disclose publicly the federal tax returns of the previous ten years, with certain privacy protections, of certain candidates for President and Vice President.  A bipartisan bill he co-sponsored, the Cyber Deterrence and Response Act, passed the House, but has not yet passed the Senate.  It establishes procedures for the identification, response and deterrence of cyber attacks and requires the President to name as “critical cyber threats” those who act maliciously in cyberspace and to impose sanctions against those who carry out hostile cyber acts against the U.S. 

These bills should be approved by the Congress and signed into law as soon as possible.  

The Pennsylvania General Assembly Finished Its Session by Passing Several Major Bills

           The majority-Republican Pennsylvania General Assembly completed its legislative session earlier this month by approving several major bills, some of which have already by signed into law.

            Comprehensive, bipartisan-supported welfare reform was overwhelmingly approved by the majority-Republican Pennsylvania General Assembly.  The bill makes drug felons ineligible for state welfare for ten years. Welfare cards will no longer be usable at casinos or sex businesses.  Lottery winnings over $600 will be counted as income for determining eligibility.  Vehicle ownership would also be a factor in calculating eligibility, the first time assets will be counted.  Liberal Democratic Governor Tom Wolf has not said whether he would sign the bill.  He recently vetoed another welfare reform bill requiring recipients to work a minimal number of hours or attend job training, after having vetoed a similar work-requirement bill last year.   

An anti-hazing bill was passed.  A comprehensive bill to address the opioid crisis was approved, in addition to the major bipartisan federal bill that was approved by the Republican-led Congress and signed into law. 

A comprehensive bill on organ donation was passed.  It prevents interference with criminal investigations.  The act grants those with the power of attorney decision-making authority, but balanced by the establishment of a procedure to determine better a dying person’s intent.  It also increases the amount on drivers license and vehicle registration applications one may donate.

A bill to increase penalties for repeat drunken drivers was approved.  

The anti-hazing, opioid, organ donation and drunken driving bills were all signed into law.

A Far-Right Candidate Has Won the Brazilian Presidential Election

           A far-right candidate won the Brazilian presidential election today, obtaining a majority over the liberal party’s standard-bearer in a run-off election, the first one elected in Brazil since the military dictatorship ended in 1985 and the first in a major South American state in several decades, evoking fears of fascism as authoritarianism, populism and excessive nationalism are on the rise in the world.

Brazil’s leading center-left party’s original candidate, a previous president, was barred from standing in the election because of his conviction for corruption.  Another took his place as the liberal nominee.  A conservative is the current president, after the impeachment and removal of the prior center-left president from office who had succeeded the one who was convicted, but the center-right candidate did not advance to the run-off.  Corruption has tainted both the Brazilian center-left and the center-right, while there remains abject poverty in the growing power, despite excessive spending by liberal governments.  The far-right candidate campaigned against corruption and budget deficits and on a socially conservative platform.

            However, the incoming populist Brazilian President is openly misogynistic, bigoted, pro-dictatorship and disrespectful of human rights.  The similarities between him and the President of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte (the “Filipino Trump”), who openly encourages extrajudicial killings, have been observed.  The far-right Brazilian incoming President is an admirer of Donald Trump and was supported by Trump’s former White Nationalist advisor.  

It will be up to the other Branches of the largest South American state’s government and the Brazilian people from across the political spectrum to be a check on their new head of state.  The center-right must root out corruption to gain trust as a more effective and legitimate opposition to liberalism than the far-right. 

            South American voters have turned away from the Left and the Socialist revolution of Venezuela’s late tyrant Hugo Chavez, as Argentina, Peru, and Chile have elected conservatives in place of liberals over the last two years.  However, the swing of the pendulum to the far-right in Brazil is ominous.  As Brazil is an emerging economic power, the markets will be shaken.  Its geopolitical significance is uncertain, except as a boost to excessive nationalism, which is based upon xenophobia or hatred of minorities.  

           May Brazilians defend their liberty and may Brazil be peaceful and prosperous.

Post #1,001: The Principles and Themes of this Blog

           In the first of what I hope will be a second thousand posts, I thought I would summarize my political principles and express the major themes I have been advancing on this blog.

            It is necessary and right to defend or promote liberty, equality, the separation of powers, the rule of law, representative government, and the free market, both in America and abroad, which is also in the self interest of the United States and in the best interest of the world.  Accepting the American Creed that all men are created equal and are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights is what makes a person an American.  For the U.S., federalism is essential.  The independence and sovereignty of all legitimate states must be respected.  Nationalism is appropriate if it is expressed in the creation of nation-states, as long as minority rights are respected or autonomy granted to distinct cultural areas, and such states do not commit aggression.  

            There must be public acknowledgement that freedom comes from God.  Public policy must be based upon morality, including respecting the dignity of all human beings.  Government should be as small as possible and fiscally responsible.  Openness and transparency are necessary protections against corruption, as well as safeguards against ineffective government.  Common sense is trustworthy, when it is based upon reason and basic knowledge, as opposed to populism that is a consequence of cynicism, foolishness or ignorance.      

Authoritarianism, nativism, protectionism and isolationism must be opposed. 

            The following are the major themes of this blog:

Defending language is defending liberty.

Government’s responsibility is to protect liberty.  The economy is not government’s responsibility, except in limited respects.

U.S. coinage and currency should be unifying, not divisive.  Therefore, they should not display the images of political leaders, at least not those who were not Founding Fathers.

Terrorism is an illegitimate strategy (and, thus, a war crime) of targeting innocent civilians with violence in order to intimidate the populace to give into the terrorists’ political demands.  Other motives or the targeting of other targets are, therefore, not terrorism.

It is prudent to vote in every primary, special or general election, because every office affects its election district, at least, and elected officials can ascend to higher offices after gaining experience in lower ones.

1,000th Post to My Blog

            This post is the 1,000^th to this blog since its launch in November 2008. 

            Thank you all for visiting, following and commenting, both directly and offline, which has encouraged me to continue to post.  People have visited this blog from well over a hundred countries, including from numerous governments, scores of colleges and universities, as well as primary schools, media outlets, private organizations and many private businesses, but I am especially honored by the loyalty of those of you who visit regularly.  Please feel free to ask questions or suggest topics, either on or offline.

            With the rise of authoritarianism in the world today, it is especially necessary to exercise the freedom of the press through blogging (web log journalism) and to read history and political opinions in order to promote liberty and representative government.

           Again, thank you.

Foreign Digest: Italy, Germany and Iraq

Italy: budget update

            The European Commission, an organ of the European Union, rejected Italy’s 2019 budget earlier this week because of the populist Italian Government’s unprecedented breach of EU rules, as the deficit would be 2.4% of the projected gross domestic product.  The rejection was unprecedented in EU history. 

The Italian Government, which opposes austerity and claims to favor economic growth, proposed a budget that exceeds the 2% rule by tens of billions of dollars because it increases welfare spending, undoes pension reform, awards victims of bank fraud and implements a flat tax for businesses.  It refuses to eliminate these items from its budget.  Italy had already been granted some flexibility for pro-growth policies.  The Commission also found the budget’s growth estimates too optimistic.  The EU and the International Monetary Fund had been critical of the Italian budget.  The Commission is giving Italy three weeks to modify its budget.  The Government will have no choice but to cut other spending, as it does not intend to leave the EU or to abandon its single currency.  However, the far-right anti-migrant and anti-European League Party leader, who is Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister, is opposed to making any changes to the budget.

Germany: to import American natural gas

The German Government announced earlier this week that it will begin to import American natural gas, which will make it less dependent on the Russian Federation for fuel.  Russia’s authoritarian and kleptocratic leader, Vladimir Putin, uses natural gas exports as leverage over European states.

Iraq: new Prime Minister

            Five months after parliamentary elections, Iraq has a new Prime Minister after the Parliament approved most of his Cabinet yesterday in another peaceful transition of power.

Foreign Digest: Burma, China, Macedonia and Afghanistan

Burma and China persecute Muslims

            In addition to Burma, which persecutes Muslims, Muslims are also being persecuted in western China by the Communist Chinese.  Both the Burmese and Chinese governments have committed gross human rights violations.           

Macedonia: name change approval

            The Macedonian Parliament approved constitutional amendments to change the Slavic Balkan State’s name to “North Macedonia.”  The approval comes after the defeat earlier this month of a referendum to change the name from the “Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.”  The referendum was supported overwhelmingly, but by less than the necessary turnout threshold.   The Russian Federation had been interfering in Macedonian politics by urging a boycott of the vote.

Macedonia had reached an accord on its name change with Greece, which had opposed the name “Macedonia” because of fear of the potential separatism of its neighboring province of Macedonia.  The dispute over the name had prevented Macedonian admission to the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.  Russia opposes Macedonian integration with the West.

Afghanistan: parliamentary elections

            Four million Afghans voted in parliamentary elections today, despite much violence committed by the Taliban, including assassinations and attacks on polling places, in addition to other assassinations and terrorist attacks.  The results are not yet available, but the courage of the Afghan people is exemplary. 

           The Islamist Taliban regime had led most of Afghanistan since 1995 and hosted al-Qaeda, the Islamist terrorists, who were responsible for the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks.  The Taliban were overthrown afterward by a coalition led by the United States, but have continued to try to return to power, despite the ongoing American-led NATO mission in support of the Afghan government. 

The Independence of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church from the Russian Orthodox Church

The Orthodox Christian Patriarch of Constantinople, who is the head of Orthodox Christianity, recognized the Ukrainian Orthodox Church as autochthonous earlier this month, thereby making it independent of the Russian Orthodox Church. 

Each national Orthodox Church is led by its own Patriarch.  Ukrainians and Russians speak different languages and have different cultures and histories.  Similarly, the Ukrainian and Russian Catholic Churches are united within Catholicism, but have separate rites and are separately led.

The Russian Orthodox Church, which had been pro-Soviet and is now supportive of the authoritarian and kleptocratic regime of ex-KGB agent Vladimir Putin, objects to the independence of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, as the recognition implicitly recognizes the independence of the ex-Soviet Republic of Ukraine from Russia.  Ukraine was granted independence after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.  The Russian Federation agreed by treaty to respect the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine, but invaded Ukraine and seized Crimea in 2014 in violation of the treaty.  Russian forces have invaded eastern Ukraine in support of ethnic Russian separatists.  Putin, who ordered the invasion of the former Soviet Republic of Georgia in 2008, has lamented the dissolution of the Soviet Union. 

The independence of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church is thus a recognition of national identity for Ukrainians and for the independence of Ukraine and an implicit rejection of the Soviet nostalgia of Putin and the Russian nationalism and irredentism he uses to maintain power.

Foreign Digest: Latvia, Hong Kong, Italy, Venezuela, Turkey and Russia

Latvia

            Although a pro-Russian party won a plurality of the vote in the Latvian parliamentary elections last week, the overwhelming majority of votes were for other parties across the political spectrum.  Those other parties will be able to form a coalition.  The former Soviet Republic of Latvia is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.  A significant ethnic Russian minority reside in Latvia after the conquest of the Baltic States by the Soviets in 1940.

Hong Kong

            The pro-Peking government of the Chinese territory of Hong Kong is limiting the freedom of the press by refusing a visa for a reporter last week.  Communist China has been restricting political freedom in Hong Kong through the local government by either appointing officials or not tolerating the election of pro-democracy or pro-independence representatives, despite China’s promise of maintaining self-rule and a separate system of liberty and the free market since its reversion from control by the United Kingdom in 1997.

            The freedom of the press has been under assault globally during the rise of authoritarianism, even in free states.  In addition to the many killings in the Russian Federation, journalists have been murdered in recent months in three European states: Malta, Slovakia and Bulgaria, while another one who was a permanent resident of the United States disappeared and is feared to have been murdered after visiting the Saudi Consulate in Turkey.

Italy

            In addition to the European Union, which I posted about earlier this month, the International Monetary Fund criticized Italy’s 2019 budget last week.  The populist Government’s budget exceeds EU spending rules because of large increases in domestic spending.

Venezuela

            Venezuela’s Socialist tyrant recently blamed Colombia for a recent attempted assassination of him.  It is typical of him, as with other dictators, to blame foreigners for internal problems.  Also, there were protests last week after the death of a prominent political prisoner.

Turkey

            The authoritarian Turkish President continues mass arrests, for alleged ties to the 2016 attempted military coup, even after the end of the state of emergency, as hundreds of more Turks have recently been arrested.

Russia

           The Russian democratic opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, was arrested again this weekend for organizing protests.  The authoritarian and kleptocratic regime of Vladimir Putin does not tolerate the freedom of peaceful assembly, among other violations of liberty.  There have been many mass protests across Russia in recent months against tyranny, corruption and Russian support for Syrian tyrant Bashar Assad, but organizers and even thousands of peaceful demonstrators have been arrested.

Columbus Day: A Holiday Intended as a Rejection of Nativism, Racism and Anti-Catholicism

Although the federal and state holiday in the United States of America of Columbus Day was celebrated on Monday, today is the anniversary of the Discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus of Genoa, on behalf of Spain, in 1492.

As I have posted in previous years for the Columbus Day holiday or the anniversary of the Discovery, it is appropriate to honor the great navigational and exploratory accomplishment that permanently bridged two worlds.  Last year, I explained the multi-cultural, pro-immigration origin of the American holiday, intended as a specific rejection of the nativism, racism and anti-Catholicism of the then-popular Klu Klux Klan because it honors not only the Discovery, but the Discoverer himself, who was a Catholic and an Italian whose contribution to American history was indispensable. 

It is necessary to remember the origin of Columbus Day as White Nationalists and those political leaders who promote such populist nativism or pander to nativists attempt to appropriate the holiday for demagogic ends, lest it be associated and thus tainted by such bigotry, which was the opposite of its intent.  Instead of a decrease in the celebration of Columbus Day because of misunderstanding of both the history of the Discovery and the origin of the holiday, an increased appreciation of those events should lead to a renewed spirit of appreciation of the dignity of all human beings, including those who are aboriginal, or those whose ancestors’ immigration was several generations ago or those whose arrival was more recent.  May the observation of Columbus Day in the U.S. also help to foster the patriotic belief that becoming an American means transcending race, ethnicity, national origin or religion to accept the American Creed that all men are created equal and endowed by the Creator with the certain inalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Italian News: James Dozier visit, Anti-Migrant law, Budgeted Deficit; Far-Right Alliance

           Retired American General James Dozier visited Italy, 37 years after his 1981 kidnapping by the Red Brigades, to thank the Italian government for rescuing him and the Italian people for supporting him and his family during and after his kidnapping.  The rescue of the U.S. General, who was nabbed near an American military base in Verona, contributed to the decline of the Red Brigades, a bloody Communist militant organization.

            The Italian Parliament approved the populist Government’s proposed anti-immigration law.  The measure ostensibly allows those seeking asylum from war, but not those migrating for economic reasons, and requires mass deportations, even though there has been a sharp decrease this year in the number of migrants reaching Italy.  Migrants to Europe usually arrive in Italy first, but settle in other European states.  Greece, Malta and Spain are other ports of entry.  The President of the Republic urged respect for the Italian Constitution and human rights laws in regard to refugees fleeing persecution.

            The Parliament also approved the Italian budget for 2019.  It has flat tax for the self-employed and some privatizations, but the deficit of 2.4% of the gross domestic product exceeds European Union spending rules.  The populist Government’s spending spree of tens of billions of dollars includes welfare in the form of transfer payments to every citizen, reversing pension reforms and payments to victims of bank fraud.   The Government claims the budget will stimulate economic growth, leading to lower deficits in two years, but EU officials have been alarmed by the spending, and financial markets have reacted negatively.  Italy has the third largest economy in the eurozone.  The situation is aggravated by the hostile attitude of the Euroskeptic populist Government that rejects any constructive criticism, even from Italian EU officials.  One of the EU officials criticizing the Italian budget is European Parliament President Antonio Tajani, who is an Italian and a member of the center-right party of former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.  The ex-premier has been critical of the Government and the alliance between his coalition partner, the far-right League, and the more center-left main populist party.  

           The League has announced an alliance with the main far-right pro-Russian French party in the elections for the European Parliament.