White House AI plan hands Big Tech the federal preemption it lobbied for

The White House has published a national AI framework plan with legislative recommendations for Congress.

The document covers seven key areas. On child protection, Congress should give parents more control over AI platforms and introduce age verification. Electricity customers shouldn't have to foot the bill for new AI data centers, and approvals for AI infrastructure should be fast-tracked.

On copyright, the government wants to let the courts decide whether AI training on protected material is legal. Instead of standing up a new AI regulatory agency, the administration is leaning on existing oversight bodies and industry standards. The plan also calls for education programs to get workers ready for AI, stating that "American workers must benefit from AI-driven growth, not just the outputs of AI development […]."

The framework would ban the government from pressuring AI providers to suppress lawful political speech. At the same time, it appears to align with Trump's campaign against allegedly "woke AI," creating an obvious tension: government pressure to make AI systems avoid views Trump sees as hostile would itself be a form of political censorship.

Congress should prevent the United States government from coercing technology providers, including AI providers, to ban, compel, or alter content based on partisan or ideological agendas.

National Policy Framework, Artificial Intelligence

Federal rules could strip states of most AI oversight

The most contentious piece of the plan: federal AI rules would override state laws to prevent what the administration calls "a fragmented patchwork of state regulations" that could hurt US competitiveness. Congress should preempt state AI laws that "impose undue burdens" and replace them with a single national standard.

The framework does carve out some exceptions. States would keep their traditional authority to enforce general laws against AI developers and users, including laws protecting children, preventing fraud, and safeguarding consumers. They'd also retain control over zoning decisions for AI infrastructure and rules governing their own use of AI in areas like law enforcement and public education.

But the limits are significant. States would not be allowed to regulate AI development at all, since the administration considers it "an inherently interstate phenomenon with key foreign policy and national security implications." States also couldn't impose rules that make it harder for Americans to use AI for activities that would be legal without AI, or hold AI developers liable for a third party's unlawful use of their models.

Google, OpenAI, and other tech companies have lobbied for uniform federal rules, arguing they're better for innovation. Trump has been pushing to get this legislation passed since taking office but hasn't had any luck so far. Critics warn this amounts to a centralization of power in the Trump administration over the potentially most transformative technology of our time and an attack on states' rights.