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Committee member warns of cyber threat, presses nominee to restore cybersecurity staff

Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs · March 6, 2026

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Summary

A member of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs told the nominee that cyberattacks — particularly from Iran — are the biggest homeland threat and said about one-third of cybersecurity staff ("over 800 individuals") were reassigned; the member urged the nominee to bring cyber professionals back into security roles.

A member of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs warned during questioning that cyberattacks are the biggest current threat to the homeland and pressed a nominee to restore cybersecurity personnel. "This is an unacceptable risk that we're facing right now," the committee member said, adding that "probably the biggest threat to the homeland right now that I worry about to Iran is cyber or cyber attacks."

The lawmaker described the attackers as "very sophisticated" and said they are "fully capable of doing a lot of harm." The member accused prior personnel decisions of shrinking the federal cybersecurity workforce, saying, "prior to this, Kristi Noem, Donald Trump, they've laid off or pushed out 1 third of the entire workforce of our cybersecurity folks, over 800 individuals." The committee member added that some of those individuals "are no longer doing cybersecurity work" and are "doing immigration work when they should be protecting our country from cyber attacks."

The member said those reassigned staff should be returned to cybersecurity duties and asked the nominee whether they would "bring cyber professionals back on the job, particularly when the United States is at war." The nominee's response is not recorded in the provided transcript excerpt.

Numbers and attributions in this account reflect statements made by the committee member in the transcript; the committee member's figures ("one third," "over 800 individuals") and assignment claims were presented as assertions during questioning and are not independently verified in the transcript.