There really was an institutional bias within Veterans Affairs against a Congressional dictum to centralize its information technology processes and The Hill has a “secretly recorded” tape to prove it, reports the Congressional newspaper. On this tape, one VA official says, “It’s about power; it’s about Congress saying, “VA, you’re accountable to us.” The security of veterans’ personal information became a major issue on Capitol Hill last spring when a laptop computer—containing information on more than 26.5 million veterans and military personnel—was stolen from the employee’s home. The laptop eventually was recovered and apparently no data compromise had occurred.
The use of a military counter-drone laser on the southwest border this week—which prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to abruptly close the airspace over El Paso, Texas—will be a “case study” on the complex web of authorities needed to employ such weapons near civilian areas and the consequences of agencies…
