Welcome to Regulator, a newsletter for Verge subscribers focusing on the tech world and the tech influencers impacting American politics and the Trump administration. If you’re not subscribed yet and want to dive into Silicon Valley’s behind-the-scenes antics, you can sign up here! It’s Q1! Surely, the corporate budget can accommodate it.
Exactly one year ago, Steve Bannon, the influential MAGA podcaster, was excited to see Big Tech CEOs flocking to Donald Trump. Just days before his inauguration, key figures were visiting Mar-a-Lago, signing checks, and even appearing quietly behind him during his second inauguration. Bannon told ABC’s Jonathan Karl that for years, Big Tech had undermined Trump—pointing out that Jeff Bezos’ Washington Post had published critical reports about him, while Meta and Alphabet supposedly stifled his online presence. But now, Bannon claimed, they were “supplicants” to Trump, who had brought in MAGA regulators ready to challenge those companies at a moment’s notice. “Most people in our movement look at this as President Trump broke the oligarchs,” he bragged.
Even minor shifts from firm MAGA stances toward the tech industry and the base’s reactions are revealing. Last November, Trump ignited controversy on the right by supporting H1-B visas for high-skilled foreign tech workers. He even suggested that U.S. workers sometimes lacked the “certain talents” needed for Big Tech jobs at home. While Trump later made significant changes to the immigration lottery that leaned more nativist, the continued existence of the H1-B visa stirred a considerable divide within MAGA circles: How could Trump allow any foreign workers, much less imply they were superior to American workers? What kind of “America First” was that?
For decades, Trump has stuck to one consistent rule: people and factions must constantly vie for his attention and approval. This was evident during his first term when New York financiers, the Republican establishment, career officials, Trump’s kids, and the proto-MAGA wing were all competing within the West Wing. By the time Trump hit the campaign trail again in 2024, the New Yorkers were worn out and left, the Republican establishment had yielded to Trump, and the career officials were on the verge of being purged. MAGA populism had triumphed, leading them to believe, to paraphrase Trump, that they would win so much they’d eventually tire of winning.
It’s clear the populists have carved out their territory in Trump’s second administration. The Department of Justice is taking legal action against Trump’s critics, the Department of Homeland Security has given ICE a broad and intimidating mandate, and the Department of Defense (sorry, War) even kidnapped a foreign head of state for laughs.
Honestly, I wouldn’t have predicted a year ago, while watching tech CEOs cheer Trump in the Rotunda, that these “supplicants” would ultimately sway him to their side. I’m uncertain what the next year holds for the internal drama out of the White House. However, it’s quite telling that Bannon, who once boasted about a plan for Trump to run for an unconstitutional third term, is reportedly considering a presidential run himself.
In the meantime, with the Senate on a one-week recess, I’ll be keeping an eye on the drama unfolding with Coinbase and the CLARITY Act regarding interest rates before the Senate Banking Committee reconvenes. Unfortunately, I’m not at Davos, where CEO Brian Armstrong is, and where most negotiations seem to be taking place. If you find yourself in a private Swiss gathering with other tech leaders and have insights about whether an actual market structure bill will pass this year, please reach out to me at [email protected], or via Signal at tina_nguyen.19.
