| A LEGISLATIVE UPDATE: SENATORS, STATE OFFICIALS MEET ON ELECTION SECURITY: Two senators sponsoring legislation to secure digital election systems from cyberattack are meeting Monday will state officials on the details of their proposal. Sens. James Lankford (R-Okla.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) are scheduled to meet with secretaries of state to discuss the Secure Elections Act, a spokesman for Lankford confirmed. The bipartisan bill, originally introduced last December, is designed to help and incentivize state officials to make cybersecurity upgrades to their election infrastructure following Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. The senators rolled out a revised version of the proposal in March, after some state officials, who are responsible for administering federal elections, expressed concerns with the effort. At least four secretaries of state are attending Monday evening's meeting with Lankford and Klobuchar, according to a spokeswoman for the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS). These officials include NASS president and Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson (R), Louisiana Secretary of State Tom Schedler (R), Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon (D), and Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft (R). Politico first reported the meeting. "During the meeting a variety of bill specifics will be discussed including information sharing protocols, formalizing communication channels and potential funding mechanisms in the future," the NASS spokeswoman said. The bill would set up a grant program for states to make election cybersecurity upgrades, including replacing paperless voting machines with those that produce a paper backup. It also aims to strengthen information sharing between federal and state officials on cyber threats to elections. Several states have complained that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was slow to share information on the 2016 threat before the election. The latest version of the bill, which contains minor modifications that appear designed to address states' concerns, has picked up support from Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and ranking member Mark Warner (D-Va.). NASS has not taken an official position on the bill. To read more from our piece, click here. A DEPARTURE IN FOCUS: SPEAKING OF ROB JOYCE... A top White House cybersecurity official is leaving the National Security Council and returning to the National Security Agency, the latest in a string of departures from the White House national security team. President Trump's cybersecurity coordinator Rob Joyce was detailed from the NSA and is returning to the agency rather than continuing in his post at the White House, according to a source familiar with the situation. White House press secretary Sarah Sanders later confirmed the development, adding that Joyce has agreed to remain on "as needed to provide continuity and facilitate the transition with his replacement." "Rob Joyce, a career federal employee detailed to the National Security Council, has conveyed his intent to return to his home agency, the National Security Agency," Sanders said in a statement. "We are all grateful for Rob's continued service to the nation." Reuters was first to report Monday that Joyce would leave the White House. Why now? New national security adviser John Bolton is seeking to reshape his team. Joyce's boss, Tom Bossert, resigned last week as White House homeland security adviser amid the reshuffle. Joyce was tapped to fill Bossert's position in an acting capacity. It was Bossert who, 13 months ago, announced that Joyce would join the NSC as cybersecurity coordinator. Joyce previously led an elite NSA hacking group called the Tailored Access Operations (TAO) unit. Takeaway: Joyce's departure will leave a void in one of the top cybersecurity roles in the administration. To read more from our piece, click here. A LIGHTER (TWITTER) CLICK: They aren't Fancy Bears. They're falling bears. (Tweet) WHO'S (STILL) IN THE SPOTLIGHT: MARK ZUCKERBERG: The European Union's digital chief is set to meet with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Tuesday amid the fallout of the Cambridge Analytica scandal. Andrus Ansip, European Commission vice president in charge of digital issues, will also meet with Google CEO Sundar Pichai and top officials from Netflix and Twitter in San Francisco according to Ansip's public calendar. The conversations come as Facebook, and Silicon Valley as a whole, deal with backlash over data collection and privacy practices across the industry. Last week, Zuckerberg testified before lawmakers on Capitol Hill to address questions about how a British research firm used by the Trump campaign, Cambridge Analytica, improperly harvested data from as many as 87 million of the platform's users. Key takeaway: The scrutiny on Facebook is a trans-Atlantic affair. Zuckerberg has also been asked to speak before British politicians but has not yet committed to making a trip to the U.K. to give public testimony on the matter. Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg has previously met with European Commission officials. To read more from our piece, click here. And in case you missed it, here are our five takeaways from Zuckerberg's blockbuster Capitol Hill testimony last week. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Commerce bars U.S. companies from selling to ZTE. (The Hill) Comey: 'Possible' Trump compromised by Russia. (The Hill) White House lashes out at Comey after explosive interview. (The Hill) GOP rep: Comey memos may bolster Trump defense against collusion charges. (The Hill) Incoming Pence adviser withdraws nomination following reports Trump opposed candidacy. (The Hill) Russia starts blocking Telegram. (Bloomberg) U.S. government-funded website 'Polygraph' fights disinformation. (NBC News) Germany says Russia likely behind cyberattack on Foreign Ministry. (Reuters) The FBI sought a search warrant for former CIA chief's email account. (The Daily Beast) If you'd like to receive our newsletter in your inbox, please sign up here. | 
