Demers' position is one of the most powerful cyber-related perches in the U.S. government.

Both men have experience responding to advanced Russian hacking activity.

“I never thought I would have to work on such a basic issue as this," the Texas Republican says about the federal security clearance process, which is still working on a large backlog of applications.

Estonia hosted its first “summer school” for 80 diplomats who work on cyber issues from 26 NATO and EU countries last week as part of its efforts to get cyber diplomats up to speed on international norms and technical developments in cyberspace.