Trump signals executive order targeting state AI laws after congressional push fails

Former President Trump said Monday he is preparing an executive order that would target state-level artificial intelligence regulations, escalating a long-running GOP feud over whether Washington should preempt state authority in a fast-moving tech sector.

In a series of Truth Social posts, Trump argued that the U.S. risks losing its competitive edge in AI if companies are forced to navigate dozens of state regulatory frameworks.

“There must be only One Rulebook if we are going to continue to lead in AI,” he wrote. “We are beating ALL COUNTRIES at this point in the race, but that won’t last long if we are going to have 50 States, many of them bad actors, involved in RULES and the APPROVAL PROCESS.”

He continued, “THERE CAN BE NO DOUBT ABOUT THIS! AI WILL BE DESTROYED IN ITS INFANCY! I will be doing a ONE RULE Executive Order this week. You can’t expect a company to get 50 Approvals every time they want to do something. THAT WILL NEVER WORK!”

The White House has not released details about the final form of the order, and aides have not confirmed when it will be signed. But a draft order circulated late last month outlined an aggressive strategy: establishing a federal task force focused on challenging state AI laws and conditioning some broadband funding on whether states adopt what the administration views as flexible, innovation-friendly rules.

That draft surfaced as House Republicans were struggling to add a federal preemption provision to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). GOP leaders had sought to use the must-pass bill as a vehicle to block state AI regulations they say could splinter the national market and slow U.S. development relative to China.

Republican leadership reportedly asked Trump to delay his executive action while they made a final attempt to include the preemption language. But by last week, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) acknowledged the votes were not there, saying lawmakers were “looking at other places” for the measure. The final NDAA text, released Sunday, omitted the provision entirely.

The failure reflects ongoing divides within the GOP. Trump and several Republican lawmakers argue that a unified national policy is essential to maintaining U.S. leadership in advanced technologies. They worry that inconsistent rules—ranging from data-handling standards to requirements for AI-generated content—could make compliance expensive and complex for developers.

But state-rights conservatives and some populist Republicans have pushed back. Figures such as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) argue that preemption efforts would strip states of their ability to respond to local concerns about privacy, algorithmic bias, and AI-driven surveillance. Some have also warned that federal overreach could undermine existing state protections that residents rely on.

With Congress at an impasse, Trump’s promised executive order now becomes the focal point of the debate. Depending on its scope, the move could trigger legal challenges from states that see it as an infringement on their authority to regulate emerging technologies.

For now, both industry leaders and policymakers are waiting to see how far the administration will go—and whether a “One Rulebook,” as Trump describes it, can be imposed without a direct act of Congress.