After Biden’s “Tech-Industrial Complex” Warning, Trump Has an Opportunity for a Fresh Start
In a striking parallel to President Eisenhower’s famous warning about the “military-industrial complex,” former President Biden used his farewell address last week to express grave concerns about what he called a “tech-industrial complex that could pose real dangers for our country.” He went further, accusing tech companies of failing “to protect our children, our families, and our very democracy,” and characterizing AI as an existential threat not only to “our economy, and our security, our society” but to “humanity” itself. These sweeping condemnations underscore how deeply entrenched demonization of the tech industry has become among policymakers—a stance they need to change so they can develop bipartisan solutions to ensure the United States remains competitive in a global economy where many countries have U.S. companies in their crosshairs.
Anti-tech rhetoric, particularly on the left, has become commonplace—but it wasn't always this way. President Clinton oversaw the start of the Internet era, working with leaders in the tech sector to enact key laws such as the Internet Tax Freedom Act (which established a moratorium, that Congress later made permanent, on Internet access taxes and discriminatory e-commerce taxes), Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (which limited liability for online service providers for the actions of their users), the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (which created new protections for copyright online), and the E-Sign Act (which made online contracts as valid as paper ones).
By advancing a light-touch regulatory framework that empowered American tech companies to thrive, the United States went on to become the global leader in the Internet economy. The economic success of Silicon Valley was seen as a win by Washington, and something to be championed abroad, such as when President Obama brought the CEO of Airbnb with him to Cuba to showcase American entrepreneurship. How things have changed.
Now, critics are bashing U.S. tech leaders for meeting with President Trump and his transition team. Democratic senators have denounced tech CEOs for supporting Trump’s inauguration. These critiques are completely hypocritical and misguided. Where were these critics when President Obama was sitting down for private dinners with tech CEOs, such as Apple’s Steve Jobs, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, and Google’s Eric Schmidt?
American business leaders should always engage with incoming administrations—regardless of party—to ensure the new government understands their challenges and can foster an environment where U.S. businesses thrive. These are companies that provide American workers with high-paying jobs, invest in R&D that keeps America at the forefront of innovation, and contribute to a vibrant U.S. economy. Advancing U.S. economic interests should transcend partisan politics.
Some critics on the left have expressed shock and dismay that so many tech leaders have seemingly gravitated towards the right. Yet they have only themselves to blame, having relentlessly attacked the tech sector during the last administration. Biden’s antitrust enforcers have pursued multiple major lawsuits against Google, Apple, Amazon, and others. His surgeon general has called for a cigarette-style warning label for social media. Meanwhile, the Biden administration has done next to nothing to defend U.S. tech companies from an onslaught of unfair policies and enforcement actions from abroad. Is it any surprise that tech leaders are seeking new allies?
As President Trump takes office, he has an opportunity to reset Washington’s relationship with Silicon Valley—a relationship that need not, and should not, be adversarial. Building a strong American economy with global technological leadership should be a bipartisan priority. As Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg noted in a recent interview about his perception of President Trump, “I think he just wants America to win.” Policymakers on both sides of the aisle should work with U.S. companies to advance this goal.
To win, the U.S. tech industry needs an administration and Congress that will not only support them at home but also defend against foreign attacks on the American tech sector. For example, neither Congress nor the Biden administration have pushed back on the billions in questionable fines levied by the European Commission on U.S. tech companies, nor the aggressive interventions by overseas competition regulators who brazenly meddle in the design of the products, services, and business models of American tech companies in ways that undercut U.S. competitiveness.
This in particular is an area where President Trump might offer a distinct alternative to the last administration. One of the animating principles that he has espoused in both business and policy is the value of counterpunching. As he said in 2016, “What happens is they hit me and I hit them back harder.” America’s tech industry needs not just a champion but an enforcer—one who hits back hard so that U.S. tech companies are no longer seen as an easy target by countries abroad. If the U.S. government stands by passively, other countries will continue to impose link taxes, streaming taxes, and other excessive fees and fines as part of their cash grabs. The next administration has both the opportunity and the obligation to show that attacking American tech companies comes with real consequences.
