Trump administration officials, increasingly intent on preventing Chinese global technological domination, keep floating the idea that the U.S. government should take a more direct hand in running next-generation 5G wireless networks. On Thursday, Attorney General William Barr said the U.S. government should consider taking a “ controlling stake ” in the European companies Nokia and Ericsson to thwart the global ambitions of China-based Huawei, which holds a leading share of the market for 5G wireless equipment. The federal government could do so directly or via a consortium of U.S. companies and private investors, Barr said.
