Chairman Garbarino Joins Washington Times’ “Threat Status” Podcast

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- House Committee on Homeland Security Chairman Andrew R. Garbarino (R-NY) joined the Washington Times' "Threat Status" podcast to discuss the threat landscape facing the United States, especially ahead of major global events on U.S. soil like the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Chairman Garbarino stressed the importance of ensuring local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies have the appropriate authorities to combat drone threats and underscored the need for proactive measures to mitigate risks posed by sophisticated cyber adversaries. Chairman Garbarino also emphasized the critical role of congressional oversight.

On the need to counter evolving drone threats :

"We delegated money for counter-UAS for the border. We delegated for these special events. And these special events, and it's not just the Super Bowl or the Olympics or America 250 or FIFA, I'm worried about any regular NFL or major league baseball game… Anybody that has a major team that plays, whether a stadium or arena, in their jurisdiction, they should have the ability to do counter-UAS actions… The fact that we were able to get these new authorities in the NDAA this year to address FIFA, to address America 250--I'm very excited to have been one of the lead negotiators in that."

"We need to stop using drones that have Chinese equipment in it… It might not be a full Chinese drone, but there are drones up there that have equipment that's made from or parts in it that are made in China."

On the escalation in cyberattacks against U.S. critical infrastructure :

"Our adversaries run the gamut. They run the gamut from somebody in their mother's basement who's just trying to hack in, all the way up to nation-state actors like China and Russia and North Korea and Iran… We have some unbelievable defensive technology when it comes to cyber. I've met with a bunch of different companies that have clients in the critical infrastructure sectors, but also, the government is a client of theirs. So, we have great tools, but we are only as strong as our weakest link. And a lot of the time, it comes down to the cyber hygiene of an individual user in the network."

"We just have to remain vigilant. And now with the new use of AI in cyberattacks--Anthropic came and talked about [how] there was the one AI attack that had very little human involvement.This is just getting more and more.It's getting scarier by the day."

Background:

In January, the House Committee on Homeland Security convened a hearing to conduct oversight of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with leaders at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), and the Science and Technology Directorate (S&T).

Last December, the Committee held its annual Worldwide Threats hearing to examine the threats facing the United States, especially as America looks forward to hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 2028 Olympics and Paralympics. As part of congressional Republicans' reconciliation package, the Committee secured funding to help DHS defend against malicious drone activity. Following the hearing, Chairman Garbarino and Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence Chairman August Pfluger (R-TX) released an updated "Terror Threat Snapshot" assessment, detailing the persistent, complex, and shifting threats facing America, its allies, and the global community.

In December 2025, Chairman Garbarino, Subcommittee on Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection Chairman Andy Ogles (R-TN), and Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Accountability Chairman Josh Brecheen (R-OK) led a hearing with testimony from Anthropic, Google, and Quantum Xchange to examine threats stemming from the use of emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), quantum computing, and hyperscale cloud infrastructure. During Cybersecurity Awareness Month and Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience Month last year, the Committee released an updated "Cyber Threat Snapshot," outlining the heightened threats posed by malign nation-states and criminals to U.S. networks and critical infrastructure since 2024. Chairman Garbarino also published an op-ed in CyberScoop, calling for enhanced public-private partnerships to combat evolving cyber threats from nation-state adversaries.

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