FIRST IN MC: MCCASKILL QUESTIONS DHS — A top Senate Democrat, Claire McCaskill, wants to know what it actually meant when the Homeland Security Department labeled election systems as “critical infrastructure.” Former DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson made the critical infrastructure designation in the waning days of the Obama administration, a move that proved controversial with many states, but current Secretary John Kelly has supported continuing it.
In a letter, McCaskill asks Kelly how many states took advantage of DHS aid before the election, and how many have taken advantage since Johnson made the critical infrastructure designation. She also asked who would pay for the DHS assistance stemming from the designation, including the costs of patching any cyber vulnerabilities discovered. source