As such, it is a vital supply line in our infrastructure. As we reported, its business systems came under a cyber attack on Friday, so the company shut down part of its pipeline operations while an investigation is ongoing into what systems have been affected by the attack.
The attack is believed to be from a group of ransomware hackers known as Dark Side. One expert called it the “the most significant and successful attack on energy infrastructure we know of in the United States.” As a result, the U.S. Department of Transportation declared a state of emergency on Sunday night.
That’s causing gas worries and shortages in multiple areas in the country, as my colleague Jennifer Oliver O’Connell reported, with people lined up at the pump and gas stations being out of gas. AAA said that it would have implications upon both supply and prices, depending on region, but that areas including Mississippi, Tennessee, and the east coast from Georgia into Delaware are most likely to experience limited fuel availability and price increases.
This was on top of the already rising gas prices likely attributable to Joe Biden’s anti-energy policies including killing the Keystone XL pipeline. We reported how Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm blamed the gas prices on the Wuhan coronavirus. Funny, though, we didn’t start having real issues until after Biden came in and started messing around with things.
But gas prices are just part of what’s sparking concerns about inflation and comparisons to Jimmy Carter and the 1970s. As we noted, Donald Trump, Jr, expressly noted the comparison. It’s starting to look more and more apt.
So when the Biden regime was asked about the attack, you would think that they would have a strong response. But nope, it’s Jimmy Carter once again. This is possibly the worst government response I have ever heard to such a significant federal crime.
Let’s listen to Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology Anne Neuberger explain that whether or not Colonial Pipeline pays ransom to these attackers is a “private sector decision” when a reporter asks what they are going to do about it and what’s the timeline for this problem being addressed.
Biden White House: It’s a “private sector decision” as to whether a ransom will be paid to bring the Colonial Pipeline back online pic.twitter.com/6p59SDYgdS
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) May 10, 2021
Now, there are a lot of things to consider in such an attack, but when it’s a pipeline that is so critical to our infrastructure you don’t just fluff it off as if it really doesn’t matter, as though we don’t really give a darn or the impact isn’t significant to the country. They didn’t give the company any input or express an opinion? This is a national security issue and a serious federal crime. If you encourage the payment of ransom, you encourage similar attacks.
Neuberger says their people are going to study how to address ransomware attacks. Seriously? Ransomware attacks have been around a while, and you are just now thinking about it? She sounds like they just spilt tea and they’re discussing how to clean it up. Talk about projecting weakness.
There is no doubt that this kind of thing would not have been the response of the prior administration. But hey, no mean tweets, so everything is cool, right?