This is not about state control of technology in that sense, that’s just a propaganda line intended for people who can’t understand the economic stakes. All the

This is not about state control of technology in that sense, that’s just a propaganda line intended for people who can’t understand the economic stakes. All the politicians who want massive expansion of US government surveillance also support getting “tougher on China”, after all. This app fight is primarily about punishing China for keeping US apps out of their market for reasons that at this point should be understood as purely protectionist (after all, Facebook and Google are on the record as willing to give up every “principle” they claim to have if they can get into China, yet China won’t take the deal). So the US has decided to play the same game as China and force foreign software companies to set up local operations with politically favored partners, like major Republican Party donor Oracle, which keeps more profits here, encourages them to work with US companies instead of Chinese ones to support their US operations, and can also ensure our local tech industry doesn’t fall to far behind in any area the government deems to be important.