Quick Hits

*** Democrats on the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee are expressing concerns about John Gibbs, President Trump's pick to lead the Office of Personnel Management. Gibbs has a history of controversial statements as a conservative commentator including claims on Twitter in 2016 that the campaign manager to Hillary Clinton participated in satanic rituals.

According to reporting in CNN, an aide to HGSAC Ranking Member Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) said that reports of Gibbs's past statements "raise serious concerns that should be discussed during the nomination process. [Peters] will thoroughly evaluate the record and qualifications of any nominee that comes before the committee."

A spokesperson for HSGAC member Sen. Maggie Hassan said that the lawmakers "has serious concerns about Mr. Gibbs's nomination to lead the Office of Personnel Management."

*** In a joint cybersecurity advisory, the National Security Agency and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency cautioned critical infrastructure operators and owners to take "immediate action" to secure against malicious activity that exploits internet-facing system components. The alert notes that many systems that are integral to national security are undergirded by critical infrastructure that was not designed to be connected to the internet or to be defended against cyberattacks. Additionally, there is freely available information that identifies internet-connected operational technology assets, creating a "perfect storm" of risk for operators.

*** Since September 2019, Lia Russell has been leading the federal workforce beat for FCW, driving coverage on pay and benefits, the COVID-19 workplace response, union affairs and efforts to eliminate the Office of Personnel Management as an independent agency with a Senate-confirmed leader. After many scoops and insightful enterprise stories, Russell is departing FCW for the masters' program at the Columbia School of Journalism. We'll miss her and we wish her well.