From boardrooms to factory floors, U.S. companies are entering a new era where federal guardrails may disappear. The laws may be rolling back, but the risk: legal, financial, and reputational, are multiplying. Getting ahead of this challenge is one of the few things boards and leadership teams can control in a business world defined by uncertainty. I. The Disappearing Roadmap Imagine you're at a dinner with fellow executives.
One of the Trump administration's top priorities has been its devastating, unilateral rollback of renewable energy projects and environmental regulations - and a corresponding, aggressive push for fossil fuel interests. But to hear a growing chorus of "abundance" proponents tell it, the real obstacle to climate progress is environmental regulation itself. In a disturbing trend, influential politicians and commentators are propagating the idea that U.S. environmental regulation is too stringent,
As the NCTA's new head, Gardner will be representing the interests of Comcast, Charter, and other cable companies. He can be expected to continue the group's long-term fight against government regulations applied to cable TV and broadband providers. He won't have much trouble convincing the current FCC chairman, Brendan Carr, who has embarked on a project to " delete" as many telecom regulations as possible.
True MAGA adherents may revolt if Trump's successor strays from hardcore populism. Business leaders could balk if they lean too far the other way. On the populist side: Trump has used tariffs to fundamentally remake the global trading order, with the goal of both punishing countries who "cheat" the U.S. and boosting domestic manufacturing. He's waged a public war on the Federal Reserve - railing against high interest rates as punishing ordinary Americans, and threatening the independence of the central bank.
"Inefficient permitting processes discourage investment and innovation, limiting the ability of U.S. companies to lead in global space markets," he stated in an Executive Order signed August 13.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing government agencies to "eliminate or expedite" environmental reviews for commercial launch and reentry licenses to streamline processes.
The department of government efficiency (Doge) is using artificial intelligence to create a delete list of federal regulations, proposing to use the tool to cut 50% of regulations by the first anniversary of Donald Trump's second inauguration.
The government is consulting on deregulating chemicals to reduce costs to business, proposing that chemicals approved by trusted foreign jurisdictions should be used in the UK.
Regulation was acting like a boot on the neck of business, choking off enterprise and innovation. Cutting red tape would have a ripple effect on the whole economy.
Instead, that's the exact opposite of what happened. Just a day after Lutnick announced a deal had been signed, news broke that Trump is on the cusp of signing executive actions which would dramatically escalate the so-called "AI arms race" with China.
Trump's assault on environmental protections has resulted in 145 actions to weaken regulations during his administration's initial 100 days, exceeding the total rollbacks of his first term.
