 "White House eyes to sue states that pass AI laws — Trump's July bid had failed")
US President Donald Trump’s administration is reportedly drafting an executive order that would direct the country’s Department of Justice to sue American states that are passing laws regulating Artificial Intelligence.
According to the copy of the draft obtained by The Washington Post, the White House is holding internal discussions over the order. However, the proposal could conflict with the legal limits to presidential power.
The executive order comes amid a split among the US Senate Republicans over the July proposal, backed by the Trump administration, to block state AI regulation. The proposal was part of Trump’s signature tax and immigration law.
After a lengthy discussion, the proposal foundered after pushback from lawmakers in both parties, concerned about the need to protect Americans from potential harms caused by AI. The White House declined to comment on the latest move.
Unregulated AI invites new worries
Several worries associated with Artificial Intelligence, such as impact on jobs, potential harms to children and increased electricity prices due to energy consumption by data centres that power AI software, are becoming major political issues for lawmakers from both parties.
According to the June survey conducted by the Pew Research Centre, 50 per cent of Americans are more concerned than excited about increased use of AI in daily life. Traditionally, the Republican Party has been vocal about limits to federal power over states.
If Trump signed the draft, it would escalate his efforts to force states into line with his priorities during his second term. In recent months, the Trump administration has sued several states, including California, over a law that sought to block law enforcement officers from covering their faces.
According to The Washington Post, the draft AI would direct the DoJ to challenge the state laws regulating the technology because they interfere with interstate commerce. The draft also proposes to establish a federal task force to evaluate existing state laws on AI and identify whether they impinge on freedom of speech.
Quick Reads
View AllTrump has been pushing the idea for a while. “We MUST have one Federal Standard instead of a patchwork of 50 State Regulatory Regimes. If we don’t, then China will easily catch us in the AI race,” he said in the past. On Wednesday, some GOP politicians and activists voiced opposition to that proposal. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said in a post on X that they oppose efforts to pass a federal preemption. “Sneaking it into the defence bill is an insult to voters,” DeSantis wrote.
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