TEXAS, USA — For hours, cell phone users across the U.S., but particularly here in Texas, had no idea why their phones were stuck in SOS mode, limiting how much they could use their mobile devices.
AT&T now says the outage was caused by a technical error while they were expanding their network, not a cyberattack.
But when answers were scarce, the FBI was involved, and federal lawmakers were asking questions.
Texas Republican Tony Gonzales called on Congress to pass his “National Digital Reserve Corps Act.”
You’ve heard of Best Buy’s “Geek Squad.” Think of this as the U.S. Government’s “Geek Army.”
“So, let’s say I’m an IT professional for a large company in, pick your city, Fort Worth. And let’s say I want to serve my country, but let’s say I don’t want to join the Marines and do 100 pushups. Well, this is your way where you can join your country as a reservist, a digital reservist, and then you can enter that way if and when your country needs your help,” Gonzales told us on Inside Texas Politics.
Gonzales argues that digital reservists will be the future of combat.
He was a Navy cryptologist for two decades, supporting combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Republican says the cellular outage was just a taste of what the country’s enemies might do should they decide to attack our infrastructure.
“And when the power goes out, or in this case, cell coverage, water, something dealing with your infrastructure, who is going to turn the power back on?” Gonzales asked. “Well, my bill essentially says we already have that expertise in our communities. Let’s empower them in a federal capacity for a limited amount of time.”
While appearing on Inside Texas Politics, Gonzales also told us he supports Gov. Greg Abbott’s decision to build an 80-acre military base in Eagle Pass, Texas, along the border.
It will house up to 2,300 Texas National Guard soldiers deployed for Operation Lone Star.
“The state is, essentially, filling the federal government’s role because the federal government is void. And here, as Texans, we’re basically getting taxed twice to have something done,” said Gonzales.
Other headlines: