In a Democracy, transitions in leadership happen more frequently than in any other form of government. And with those transitions, some previous policies and orders are preserved and some are reversed. This approach to government is a constant reality for the United States and will not change under the incoming Trump Administration. Just as President Obama changed and reversed some of the policies and orders implemented under the Bush Administration between 2000 and 2008, we should expect to see policies and orders altered by President Trump. Thus, the natural and normal questions we have on the eve of our country’s presidential inauguration focus on which policies, regulations and orders will President Trump keep in place; which ones will he change; and what new policies will be established.
I certainly anticipate changes in Internet law. For example, President Trump is already being pressured to reverse President Obama’s Open Internet Order (also known as “net neutrality”) and take an aggressive stance against it. Complicating the issue, there is growing concern regarding how cyber space and the Internet are being used to conduct cyber-warfare, cyber-crime and cyber-terrorism. It remains to be seen how President Trump will balance the call for privacy regulations amidst our country’s vulnerability to cyber-attacks.
