Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) and Representative Bennie Thompson (D-MS) have called on newly appointed national security advisor Robert O’Brien to reinstate the position of White House cybersecurity coordinator, which his predecessor John Bolton eliminated last year.
The move was largely criticized by cyber experts who saw the job – which oversees government cyber protections, international cyber negotiations, and general U.S. cyber policy – as too complex to be subsumed into broader White House operations. The position has played a key role responding to major cyber events, including the 2014 Sony hack, the 2015 OPM breach, and Russian digital meddling in the 2016 election.
Warner said Bolton’s decision “showed a lack of seriousness in tackling the immediate national security threats facing our country.” Thompson charged that “the White House has done little to address the vacuum left behind.”
