When it comes to government data, Trump’s ‘America First’ ideas are doomed to fail
Tokyo — Open up the guts of the US government (something Donald Trump hinted he’ll do) and what do you see? A sprawling tangle of information technology services contracted out to private companies working on everything from Obamacare to immigration, Air Force bases and intelligence gathering. A look at Japan’s NTT Data shows that some of the largest providers are owned by foreign companies, potentially putting them athwart Trump’s "America first" brand of economic nationalism. Some have been embedding themselves into the government for decades, operating typically through US subsidiaries, often ones they acquired. Others write the code, provide consulting, develop strategies from offices in the US and abroad — showing just how hard it may be to decide whether US taxpayer dollars are really going to US jobs. For example, NTT Data, a US unit of Japan’s former telephone monopoly, serves more than 50 federal government and military agencies and is competing for slices of the more than ...
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