Apple vs. Justice Dept.

Though wary of the intrusive power of big government, I have been sympathetic to the government’s position during the privacy/encryption dispute with Apple.

I felt that the Justice Department was being reasonable in requesting a one-time ruling in a specific case and that Apple was conjuring up some Orwellian threat out of proportion to the reality of a modern democracy.

But now, with the possibility of a Donald Trump presidency becoming a reality, I’m having second thoughts. As he develops his “enemies list” and prepares to change libel laws, the Donald must be salivating at any precedent weakening a citizen’s right to privacy and increasing the potential powers of the Trump House.

This story was originally published March 18, 2016 at 8:56 PM with the headline "Apple vs. Justice Dept.."