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How Federal Budget Cuts Could Devastate American Innovation

Tech titans are supporting a war on government agencies that could be devastating for American technological leadership and innovation, writes Jake Steckler.

Even as Big Tech and a who’s who of major venture capitalists lined up to donate millions to Trump’s campaign and inauguration fund—an unprecedented show of support compared to previous administrations—they owe their very omnipresence to government projects that resulted in not just the internet, but the microchips and touch screens that power its most seductive technology, the smartphone. Marc Andreessen, one of the world's most influential entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, touts the impact of government funding for scientific research, which he cites as one of the keys to “American technology leadership.” Yet he’s one of President Trump’s most outspoken supporters due to his concerns about regulatory overreach by Democrats. Much of the Trump administration’s impact on innovation will rely on majority support in the House and Senate, which control the federal budget and maintain authority on immigration policy, including the laws that dictate how employment and educational visas are awarded.

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