UPDATE:
According to the New York Post, Department of Homeland Security acting Secretary Chad Wolf is refusing to carry out Trump’s order to fire Christopher Krebs, who heads the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
Krebs has told associates he expects to be fired after having been instrumental in formulating CISA’s statement (below) declaring the November 3rd election to be “the most secure in American history.”
Original Post:
The U.S. government agency has a long name, but its statement is short, clear, and damning.
The Elections Infrastructure Government Coordinating Council and the Election Infrastructure Sector Coordinating Executive Committees* issued the following statement yesterday (Emphasis mine):
“The November 3rd election was the most secure in American history. Right now, across the country, election officials are reviewing and double checking the entire election process prior to finalizing the result.
“When states have close elections, many will recount ballots. All of the states with close results in the 2020 presidential race have paper records of each vote, allowing the ability to go back and count each ballot if necessary. This is an added benefit for security and resilience. This process allows for the identification and correction of any mistakes or errors. There is no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes, or was in any way compromised.
“Other security measures like pre-election testing, state certification of voting equipment, and the U.S. Election Assistance Commission’s (EAC) certification of voting equipment help to build additional confidence in the voting systems used in 2020.
“While we know there are many unfounded claims and opportunities for misinformation about the process of our elections, we can assure you we have the utmost confidence in the security and integrity of our elections, and you should too. When you have questions, turn to elections officials as trusted voices as they administer elections.”
According to Reuters, Christopher Krebs, who heads the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), “has told associates he expects to be fired,”
Reuters adds:
Separately, Bryan Ware, assistant director for cybersecurity at CISA, confirmed to Reuters that he had handed in his resignation on Thursday. Ware did not provide details, but a U.S. official familiar with his matter said the White House asked for Ware’s resignation earlier this week.
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* The full composition: The members of Election Infrastructure Government Coordinating Council (GCC) Executive Committee – Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Assistant Director Bob Kolasky, U.S. Election Assistance Commission Chair Benjamin Hovland, National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) President Maggie Toulouse Oliver, National Association of State Election Directors (NASED) President Lori Augino, and Escambia County (Florida) Supervisor of Elections David Stafford – and the members of the Election Infrastructure Sector Coordinating Council (SCC) – Chair Brian Hancock (Unisyn Voting Solutions), Vice Chair Sam Derheimer (Hart InterCivic), Chris Wlaschin (Election Systems & Software), Ericka Haas (Electronic Registration Information Center), and Maria Bianchi (Democracy Works)
The author is a retired U.S. Air Force officer and a writer.