Wait, I though Al Gore invented the Internet?

(Hillicon Valley) — Senate John Kerry (D-Mass.) warned Tuesday that spending cuts could wipe out future government achievements, like the invention of the Internet, which Kerry credited to Washington.

“A lot of people don’t think about that. But the fact is the government invented the Internet,” Kerry said in a 30-minute floor speech.

Kerry said the Internet was first conceived by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) as a communications system in case of nuclear war.

“The private sector saw the opportunities and took those opportunities and translated them into what we have today, which has revolutionized the way people communicate and do business,” Kerry said.

The credit government deserves for developing the Internet has long been a subject of partisan wrangling.

Former Vice President Al Gore weathered unrelenting criticism during the 2000 campaign for claiming he “took the initiative in creating the Internet.”