> make a draconian law that forces all electronic devices to run approved software only

That would outlaw programming. It's just not feasible at all, anyone with any kind of tech literacy understands that encryption is here to stay. It's also necessary for the web to function at all for the things we use it for, such as banking.

There is no way to prevent people from communicating in secret. Even if they did strictly control digital communication people would just communicate some other way.