FCW Insider: March 26, 2021
The latest news and analysis from FCW's reporters and editors.
Air Force seeks 'ubiquitous connectivity' from telework to bases
Lauren Knausenberger, the Air Force's CIO, said since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the service had increased focus on telework and improving base connectivity.
House Dems seek clarity on hazy White House pot policy
The White House has fired at least five staffers after their disclosure of previous marijuana use and some lawmakers urging the White House to clarify its policies and take into account a growing nationwide movement supporting legal pot.
Impatient lawmakers press Biden for cyber director nominee
President Joe Biden has said cybersecurity will be a top priority for his administration, but two senior positions focused on the issue remain either vacant or held by an acting official.
Quick Hits
*** Gen. Paul Nakasone, the chief of U.S. Cyber Command and the National Security Agency, told lawmakers on the Senate Armed Services Committee that he had recently provided a notification to Congress that he would carry out an offensive cyber operation. The remarks came in response to a question from Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) who asked the general about whether those notifications were being provided to lawmakers specifically for cyber operations. The White House has not yet announced any formal retaliation against the suspected Russian agents who carried out the campaign against SolarWinds and the company's customers including nine federal agencies, but has told reporters it is preparing executive orders in response to its investigative findings regarding the breach.
*** Alethea Predeoux was tapped by the Office of Personnel Management to serve as director of the agency's Office of Congressional, Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs. Predeoux comes to OPM from the American Federation of Government Employees, where she was legislative director.