Stripping voters' rights: Texas voter I.D. is power struggle for Democrats

By GottaLaff

The naked truth about stripping voters' rights:

But what began as a struggle by Democrats to keep a voter ID bill from coming up for a vote has continued, in part, as a tussle for control.

"This is not a bitter battle. This is a power struggle," said Rep. Myra Crownover, R-Denton.

Democrats have offered to suspend rules to take up major legislation – as long as it doesn't have a thing to do with forcing voters to present IDs at the voting booth.

[...]

Republicans – rightly or wrongly is in the eye of the beholder – don't want to give Democrats control of the House's agenda, which is set by a House committee. [...]

The whole session has been a delicate balancing of House power, and now the fight is nakedly partisan.

And speaking of airing our differences, we all know how Rushpublics feel about nakeditude.

Democrats fear voter ID could cost them at least 1,000 votes every election in each House district – enough to have turned Mesquite Democrat Robert Miklos' 500-vote upset last fall into defeat.

And next year's House elections will decide whether Republicans next session get to dominate redistricting again. A Democratic House majority, especially if the party could win a couple of statewide races next year, would deny the GOP its huge map-making advantage.

The finer points of election rules make a huge difference in who gets to rule.

The tension is clearly unbare-able.

Federal government's cybersecurity coordinator resigns

By GottaLaff

The NSA v. Rod Beckstrom. Guess who won:

The resignation of the federal government's cybersecurity coordinator highlights a power struggle underway over how best to defend the government's civilian computer networks against digital attacks.

Rod A. Beckstrom resigned the post Friday after less than a year on the job, citing a lack of funding and the National Security Agency's tightening grip on government cybersecurity matters.

Beckstrom is director of the National Cyber Security Center -- an organization created last March to help coordinate such security efforts across the intelligence community. But recently, Beckstrom said, efforts have been underway to fold his group into a facility at the NSA.

Beckstrom said in an interview over the weekend that his group was formed to coordinate the various agencies' efforts but not to be controlled by NSA.

"This is a coordination body and it resides alongside or above the other centers, but certainly not below them," Beckstrom said. "In my view, it is very important that there be independence for the [center], and that it be able to carry out its role."

The Obama administration is in the midst of a 60-day review of the government's cybersecurity initiative, with recommendations on next steps expected sometime next month.

Philip Lieberman, president of Lieberman Software, a Los Angeles-based security software maker, said the new administration faces a tough job balancing privacy and civil liberties issues with the real need to help secure the Internet, a major engine of the world's economic activity. [...]

Beckstrom said he decided to leave roughly 10 days ago, after learning that orders were canceled for computers, network equipment, furniture and office space in Arlington slated for his group. While he officially reports to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, Beckstrom said he has not yet had a meeting with her.

"Once you lose your space, have no money and no chance to meet with your boss, and decisions are being made about your future with no consultation, it's time to go," Beckstrom said.

A former Silicon Valley entrepreneur and author with no government experience, Beckstrom was seen as an unorthodox pick by many Washington insiders. "He brought a completely different perspective, which in one way could have been his undoing," said a senior member of the intelligence community, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

The Bush administration created Beckstrom's office shortly after it launched the "comprehensive national cyber security initiative," an effort to help shield government networks from online attack.