April 2019

That Other Big Report

Digital provisions in the revamped trade agreement among the US, Mexico and Canada will give the US economy a modest boost, with the technology and telecommunications sectors being the biggest beneficiaries, according to an independent analysis from the US International Trade Commission. The report, a key step before Congress votes on the deal, echoes several points tech lobbyists have long argued. Jordan Haas, the Internet Association’s trade policy director, urged Congress to quickly pass the deal.

Reading between the redacted lines

The redacted Mueller report highlighted, at least from a tech perspective, much of what we’d already known since the indictments were first announced, including of course the top-line takeaway that Russia indeed sought to use Facebook and Twitter, largely through the St. Petersburg-based Internet Research Agency, to influence the 2016 election in then-candidate Donald Trump’s favor. Particularly noteworthy is that high-ranking members of the president’s inner circle including Kellyanne Conway, Brad Parscale, Michael Flynn and Donald Trump Jr.