I actually think that as a physical connector, lightning is still better than usb-c. I'm not suggesting that they should keep it around (I long for a full usb-c device life), just that it is a much less fussy connector than usb-c. I don't struggle with blindly insert a lighting cable into my phone or my iPad but frequently will struggle to do the same with a usb-c cable on my macbook pro, despite it being a reversible cable.
I've also had usb-c cables break at the stem of the device while this has never happened with lightning. I'm not certain if this is the nature of the design of usb-c or if it was simply a cheap cable that had no strain relief for the physical connector, but in either case I've never experienced a snapped lightning connector.
The problem with these government mandates is that eventually there will come a new and better connector that phone manufacturers will be blocked from implementing on their phones until after a lengthy legislative process.