Because in the US privacy doesn't seem to be a high priority for federal politicians (of either party if you ask me). Such things have been regulated by nation

Because in the US privacy doesn't seem to be a high priority for federal politicians (of either party if you ask me). Such things have been regulated by national and European law for ages over here, and the GDPR was the latest brick in that wall. I recall that in particular Americans were very surprised when it passed, while for most Europeans it was simply the harmonization and continuation of very similar earlier laws. While the GDPR (and predecessors and co-laws) is certainly not perfect, sometimes it works very well.