Level of Government

With Election Day in the rearview mirror, the U.S. is considering what a second Donald Trump administration means for the country. For the broadband industry, that means wondering what will happen with the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program. The long and the short of it? The biggest influence on BEAD could come from outside the government.

Dear Chairwoman Rosenworcel:  The results of the 2024 presidential election are now apparent and leadership of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will soon change. As a traditional part of the peaceful transfer of power, the FCC should immediately stop work on any partisan or controversial item under consideration, consistent with applicable law and regulation. There are many bipartisan, consensus items that the FCC could pursue to fulfill its mission before the end of your tenure. I urge you to focus your attention on these matters.

Early on November 6, Donald Trump became the presumptive winner of the 2024 US presidential election, setting the stage for dramatic changes to federal artificial intelligence policy when he takes office early next year.

Former President Donald Trump will return to the White House, bringing his retrofuturistic, tech-friendly, pro-industrial vision for America’s future with him.

When president-elect Trump is sworn in for his second term on January 20, 2025, his administration will take over wireless policy. What analysts say we should expect: 

Though votes are still being counted, the verdict appears to be clear. Donald Trump won. So, now what? Surprisingly, that question has a few easy answers—as well as a few that are less clear. First things first. Historically, the party in power has held a 3-2 majority at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), allowing them to carry out the president’s policy agenda.

National Rural Electric Cooperative Association CEO Jim Matheson issued a statement on the election results, congratulating President-Elect Trump and touching on electric cooperative policy priorities: 

The red wave that swept Donald Trump to re-election did not, despite what some podcasters might claim, originate in Silicon Valley. In San Francisco, rank-and-file tech workers still largely vote for Democrats. And while some prominent tech leaders came out in support of Trump—most notably, Elon Musk and a cluster of right-wing executives and venture capitalists who bankrolled his campaign—many others either supported Kamala Harris or parked themselves comfortably on the sidelines.

Donald Trump clinched the presidency for a second time on November 6, delivering a victory for tech and business magnates such as Elon Musk who rallied around his campaign. Trump’s first term was marked by a wave of deregulation across the tech and telecom sectors and punctuated by 

American voters have just decided—among many other things—that artificial intelligence will grow up in a permissive, anythin