Ƶ Comment on Trump Administration’s AI Action Plan

Plan thwarts the will of Congress and endangers civil rights

July 23, 2025 1:05 pm

Media Contact
125 Broad Street
18th Floor
New York, NY 10004
United States

WASHINGTON — Today, the Trump administration released a sweeping AI Action Plan, which thwarts the decision of Congress to not preempt state laws and is a dangerous step backward for protecting civil rights and civil liberties against artificial intelligence (AI) use. The plan, titled “,” pushes a political agenda at the expense of everyone’s right to robust protection from biased and erroneous AI tools, and disproportionately harms the communities most at risk of algorithmic discrimination.

In response, Cody Venzke, senior policy counsel with the Ƶ, issued the following statement:

“President Trump’s attempt to restrict state AI regulations is not only harmful, it raises serious legal questions as the president is acting beyond any statute passed by Congress. Congress overwhelmingly rejected this approach, removing it from a major bill in a 99-1 Senate vote, and 17 Republican governors publicly opposed it.

“Now the administration is moving forward unilaterally. The plan undermines state authority by directing the Federal Communications Commission to review and potentially override state AI laws, while cutting off ‘AI-related’ federal funding to states that adopt robust protections. This preemption effort stifles local initiatives to uphold civil rights and shield communities from biased AI systems in areas like employment, education, health care, and policing.

“The plan also directs revisions to the federal AI Risk Management Framework to eliminate any mention of diversity, equity, and inclusion, misinformation, or climate. These changes could preclude AI developers from considering discriminatory and unfair harms, potentially dismantling some of the only existing safeguards meant to prevent AI from reproducing or exacerbating existing societal bias. Additional provisions mandating that federal contractors only provide systems that are ‘free from top-down ideological bias’ may have downstream impacts on free speech, potentially censoring how AI can talk about race, gender, climate, or inequality.

“We urge the administration to immediately rescind these harmful and unlawful actions and ensure that states and the federal government have robust AI safeguards in place.”

Learn More Ƶ the Issues in This Press Release