Obama to leave U.S. vulnerable to EMP attack

[rangerrebew]

Obama to leave U.S. vulnerable to EMP attack
'May not be an accident that this action is being addressed on the last full day of the administration'
Published: 11 hours ago
 

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration, on the eve of its transfer of power, is about to impose new standards to protect the nation’s life-sustaining electric grid from solar storms.

However, the new standards by a Democrat-dominated regulatory board, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, will address only solar activities. Pointedly, it will not protect the vulnerable national grid from a man-made, high altitude, nuclear detonation that could create an electromagnetic pulse.

Such an EMP could have a catastrophic impact on the nation’s technology-based, life-sustaining critical infrastructures.

Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2017/01/obama-to-leave-u-s-vulnerable-to-emp-attack/#JzVTAV4s4QoQATV8.99

[thackney]

Transforming the Nation’s Electricity System:
https://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2017/01/f34/Transforming%20the%20Nation%E2%80%99s%20Electricity%20System--Summary%20for%20Policymakers.pdf
The Second Installment of the Quadrennial Energy Review
 January 2017

Summary for Policymakers

The second installment of the Quadrennial Energy Review (QER 1.2) focuses on the electricity system and
its role as the enabler for accomplishing three key national goals: improving the economy, protecting the
environment, and increasing national security. As a critical and essential national asset, it is a strategic
imperative to protect and enhance the value of the electricity system through modernization and
transformation. Reliable and affordable electricity provides essential energy services for consumers,
business, and national defense....

Key Crosscutting Recommendations to Support the Security and Reliability of the Electricity System

Amend Federal Power Act authorities to reflect the national security importance of the Nation’s
electric grid. Grid security is a national security concern—the clear and exclusive purview of the
Federal Government. The Federal Power Act, as amended by the FAST Act, should be further
amended by Congress to clarify and affirm the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) authority to
develop preparation and response capabilities that will ensure it is able to issue a grid-security
emergency order to protect critical electric infrastructure from cyber attacks, physical incidents,
EMPs, or geomagnetic storms. In this regard, Federal authorities should include the ability to
address two-way flows that create vulnerabilities across the entire system. DOE should be
supported in its development of exercises and its facilitation of the penetration testing necessary
to fulfill FAST Act emergency authorities. In the area of cybersecurity, Congress should provide
FERC with authority to modify NERC-proposed reliability standards—or to promulgate new
standards directly—if it finds that expeditious action is needed to protect national security in the
face of fast-developing new threats to the grid. This narrow expansion of FERC’s authority would
complement DOE’s national security authorities related to grid-security emergencies affecting
critical electric infrastructure and defense-critical electricity infrastructure. This approach would
maintain the productive NERC-FERC structure for developing and enforcing reliability standards,
but would ensure that the Federal Government could act directly if necessary to address national
security issues....

- - - - - - - - - -

Reading through the actual recommendations from the Federal publication, it appears to be another false claim from WND

[HonestJohn]

We've been vulnerable to an EMP since 1945.

Point?

[EC]

I was going to say the same. W left office, leaving the USA vulnerable to EMP attack. Clinton left office with the USA vulnerable to EMP attack. Bush Sr. left office and the USA was vulnerable to EMP attack. Reagan left office having made the USA more vulnerable to EMP attack. Just keep going backwards, it's all the same. And it always will be - hardening the power network is too costly to do.

[Oceander]

If somebody manages to detonate a high altitude nuke over the continental US, I'm not sure if we wouldn't have more pressing existential problems than the civilian power grid. 

[Frank Cannon]

If somebody manages to detonate a high altitude nuke over the continental US, I'm not sure if we wouldn't have more pressing existential problems than the civilian power grid.

Existential problems? What the hell is more important than watching Dancing with the Stars?

[Fishrrman]

Speaking of EMP attacks on the USA, there's an interesting book out there by William R. Fortschen titled "One Second After" that depicts life in a small southern town after such an event. An easy and enjoyable read.

[EC]

Cheers! Just bought it for the kindle - gives me something to read.

I'm always curious with these types of books - spent a lot of years total in places with destroyed (or incredibly basic) infrastructure and I like to see how well the books match up to what I've experienced.

[DCPatriot]

Is this somebody's idea of 'funny'

....the front page only reads: "Obama to leave U.S. ---

Damn!