Previously, he said, commenters typically waited until the last minute to file comments so that no one could see their views until after the comment period was over.
Before, commenters would comment ASAP, far before the deadline.
mnli hypothesis: Before, commenters would comment ASAP, far before the deadline. premise: Previously, he said, commenters typically waited until the last minute to file comments so that no one could see their views until after the comment period was over.