Net Neutrality: Trump's Next Big Target
The Trump Administration has been clear and outspoken in their conviction that net neutrality is a clear regulatory overreach. And recently, White House spokesman Sean Spicer has verbally confirmed that President Trump will be working on ways to reverse neutrality rules in the coming months.
The Evolution of the Internet
The internet has evolved pretty rapidly over the past 20 years. Most adults remember the days of dialup service, where sounds like these meant you were tapping into the World Wide Web. Then, there was DSL and high-speed internet. At the time, the speed seemed incredible -- but looking back, things essentially moved at a snail’s pace. Then we got Wi-Fi, which allowed us to wirelessly connect to the internet. And now there are mobile hotspots, which let you wirelessly connect anywhere you are, even when there isn’t a Wi-Fi network in your immediate location.
Over the years, the internet has evolved -- but one thing has remained consistent: liberals have aimed to regulate it. For decades, they’ve wanted to attach chains to the internet and put the government in charge. And finally, under the globalist reign of former President Barack Obama, these left-wing puppets got their wish in the form of net neutrality.
Using language that was eerily similar to his explanation of universal healthcare, Obama explained why he was pushing the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to begin enforcing net neutrality in November 2014 by saying, “We cannot allow Internet service providers (ISPs) to restrict the best access or to pick winners and losers in the online marketplace for services and ideas. I believe the FCC should create a new set of rules protecting net neutrality and ensuring that neither the cable company nor the phone company will be able to act as a gatekeeper, restricting what you can do or see online.”
What most people don’t realize is that net neutrality is anything but a push for freedom and preservation of the internet. It’s a direct assault on the principles of free market economics, which have shown (time and time again) that a lack of government interference creates higher supply, lower prices, and better service.
But Obama and his minions tried to convince the American people that unlimited access and government-dictated scarcity are good things. (If that sounds a lot like failed ObamaCare, that’s because it is.) In doing so, he set “Big Brother” up to control the evolution of the internet moving forward.
President Trump Preparing to Fight Net Neutrality
Thankfully, we finally have a president back in office who prioritizes the needs of the American people over the needs of other countries. We finally have a president who recognizes that free market economics are superior to socialist ideologies. We finally have a president who would prefer to let American businesses control the direction an industry takes, as opposed to government officials who are controlled by complicated webs of quid pro quos. We finally have a president who puts America first.
Just a few weeks ago, White House spokesman Sean Spicer spoke up and called net neutrality out for what it really is, a regulatory overreach, and described President Trump’s intentions to reverse the former administration’s regulations.
“The previous administration, in an attempt to treat internet service providers differently than edge providers, such as Google and Facebook, reclassified them as common carriers -- much like a hotel or another retail outlet -- and opened the door to an unfair regulatory framework,” Spicer told reporters. “[Reversing net neutrality] will allow all service providers to be treated fairly and consumer protection and privacy concerns to be reviewed on an equal playing field.”
The Case Against Net Neutrality
If you read news articles or listen to late night talk show hosts, you’ll be told that everyone is in support of net neutrality. After all, who could oppose free access without favor? (That’s the way liberals describe it, anyway.) Say anything negative about net neutrality and the left will call in the lynch mob and claim you support discrimination. But if you use logical thinking -- something the left seems unable to practice -- it becomes clear that net neutrality is actually pretty terrible and discriminatory.
Why should President Trump take down net neutrality? Here are a few reasons:
1. Government Suddenly Has More Control
When has more government interference and control ever been a positive thing? Well, net neutrality ensures the government gets as much control as it wants, no questions asked. As entrepreneur Joshua Steimie has warned for years, net neutrality essentially gives the government the means needed to monitor broadband connections and even install its own hardware and software to monitor internet traffic. Once installed, who’s to say they won’t use that interference for other purposes?
2. The System Has Worked Just Fine
Net neutrality is a classic example of an instance where liberal policymakers want to interfere with something that’s working just fine. Trillions of dollars have been invested into the internet since its inception and virtually 100 percent of Americans have access to the internet. The vast majority -- close to 90 percent -- have connections that are faster than 100 Mbps. So the left’s argument that fast, affordable internet access is something that only the privileged have is a joke.
3. It’s Not Fair to Customers
Picture yourself in a restaurant. You and your friend are enjoying a nice night out on the town. You aren’t super hungry, so you just order a soup and salad off the appetizer menu. Your friend is really hungry and orders a 44-oz steak. When the waiter brings you both your checks, you both owe the same amount. You ask the waiter why and he tells you that’s just the way it is. After all, it wouldn’t be fair if you paid less than your friend.
The previous scenario might seem ridiculous, but that’s essentially what net neutrality will do. It doesn’t matter if you only use a certain amount of data and only want minimum speeds, you’re going to pay the exact same amount as someone who uses unlimited data at the highest possible speed. In a world where net neutrality prevails, this will be the norm. Charging everyone the same price is anything but fair, but Big Brother will try to convince you that it is.
What’s Next?
The Trump Administration still faces an uphill battle in taking down net neutrality, but he has the pieces in place to get the ball moving. It appears that he’ll prioritize this regulatory overreach in the coming months and return to the free market economics that have made this country so great for so many years. At least, that’s what we all hope.