President Trump thought his executive order would settle the debate over artificial intelligence regulation.
The Florida Governor had other ideas.
And five words from Ron DeSantis just put Donald Trump on notice about AI.
Trump's executive order triggered a conservative rebellion
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on December 11 attempting to block states from regulating artificial intelligence.¹
Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that "there's only going to be one winner" in the global AI race between America and China.²
The President argued that forcing tech companies to comply with 50 different state regulations would cripple American innovation and hand victory to the Chinese Communist Party.
"We have the big investment coming, but if they had to get 50 different approvals from 50 different states, you can forget it because that's not possible to do," Trump said.³
The executive order directs Attorney General Pam Bondi to create an "AI Litigation Task Force" to sue states over their AI laws.⁴
It also threatens to withhold federal broadband funding from states that refuse to back down.⁵
But Trump's order sparked an immediate revolt from an unexpected corner — his own MAGA base.
Former Trump adviser Steve Bannon called the executive order an "entirely unenforceable" giveaway to tech billionaires.⁶
Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) declared that "states must retain the right to regulate and make laws on AI."⁷
Conservative groups focused on protecting children from AI harms accused Trump of abandoning his populist principles to serve Silicon Valley interests.
Michael Toscano, director of the Family First Technology Initiative at the Institute for Family Studies, a conservative think tank, didn't hold back.
"This is a huge lost opportunity by the Trump administration to lead the Republican Party into a broadly consultative process," Toscano said.⁸ "It doesn't make sense for a populist movement to cut out the people on the most critical issue of our day."
DeSantis defied Trump with five words that changed everything
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis held a roundtable discussion at Florida Atlantic University on Monday to advance his comprehensive "AI Bill of Rights" proposal for the state.⁹
DeSantis announced Florida would move forward with AI regulations protecting children, consumers, and families — regardless of Trump's executive order.
The Florida Governor's proposal includes prohibiting AI chatbots from posing as licensed therapists after a 14-year-old boy died by suicide in February 2024 after being sexually groomed by a Character.AI chatbot.¹⁰
His plan also gives parents control over how their children interact with AI platforms and bans the non-consensual use of someone's image and likeness.
DeSantis went further, vowing to stop Florida taxpayers from subsidizing the massive data centers that AI companies want to build.
When asked about Trump's executive order attempting to override state AI laws, DeSantis delivered his answer in five devastating words.
"Clearly, we have a right to do this," DeSantis said.¹¹
https://twitter.com/FLVoiceNews/status/2000599009447256209?s=20
The Florida Governor explained that Trump's executive order cannot legally preempt state legislation.
"You can preempt states under Article 1 powers through congressional legislation on certain issues, but you can't do it through executive order," DeSantis stated.¹²
DeSantis argued Florida is legislating within its rights under the 10th Amendment, which reserves powers not delegated to the federal government to the states.
"Even reading it very broadly, I think the stuff we're doing is going to be very consistent," DeSantis said of Trump's order.¹³ "But irrespective, clearly, we have a right to do this."
DeSantis acknowledged that Attorney General Bondi might challenge state laws "because they're worried about California, Colorado, doing really crazy things."¹⁴
But the Florida Governor expressed confidence his state's protections would survive federal scrutiny.
"I don't know how successful that would be," DeSantis said.¹⁵ "But the reality is I don't anticipate that even happening against any of the stuff we're doing in Florida. But if it does, I think we would be well positioned to be able to prevail on that."
This isn't the first time DeSantis fought federal overreach.
https://twitter.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/2000696952623665456?s=20
He rejected more than $11 billion in federal funding during the Biden administration because of strings attached.
DeSantis sued Biden over vaccine mandates, arguing "the federal government is exceeding their power."
And he built a reputation as a governor who puts Florida sovereignty ahead of Washington, D.C. demands.
Now DeSantis is applying that same principle to Trump's executive order.
The irony is that Trump's order was supposed to stop blue states like California from imposing radical regulations.
Instead, it's triggering a constitutional clash with a conservative governor defending traditional Republican principles about federalism and states' rights.
Trump's AI czar David Sacks tried to reassure conservatives that the administration won't push back on "kid safety" measures.
https://twitter.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/2000634916740984852?s=20
But the executive order contains no such exemption.
It empowers the Justice Department to challenge any state AI law the administration deems "onerous" — which could include DeSantis' child protection provisions.
Legal experts say Trump's executive order is almost certain to fail in court.
The president cannot override state laws through executive fiat.
Only Congress has that power under Article I of the Constitution.
And even then, Congress would need to pass specific legislation — something Republicans have already tried and failed to do twice this year.
The real question is whether DeSantis' defiance will encourage other Republican governors to stand their ground.
Utah Governor Spencer Cox and Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders have both expressed concerns about Trump's approach.
If more governors join DeSantis in defending state sovereignty, Trump's executive order becomes an empty threat that only exposes the growing divide between MAGA populists and the tech billionaires now influencing policy in the White House.
¹ Michelle Vecerina, "Gov. DeSantis advances Florida AI Bill of Rights plan after federal executive order," Florida News, December 15, 2025.
² Andrew Atterbury, "'We have a right to do this': DeSantis wants Florida to move ahead with AI policies," Politico, December 15, 2025.
³ Ibid.
⁴ Mackenzie Weinger and Maria Curi, "Trump signs executive order targeting state AI laws," Axios, December 11, 2025.
⁵ Khari Johnson, "California's AI regulation in the crosshairs of Trump executive order," CalMatters, December 11, 2025.
⁶ Alexander Bolton, "Trump picks fight with MAGA allies in issuing AI executive order," The Hill, December 16, 2025.
⁷ Ibid.
⁸ Bobby Allyn, "Trump is trying to preempt state AI laws via an executive order. It may not be legal," NPR, December 11, 2025.
⁹ Vecerina, "Gov. DeSantis advances Florida AI Bill of Rights plan."
¹⁰ Ibid.
¹¹ Atterbury, "'We have a right to do this.'"
¹² Vecerina, "Gov. DeSantis advances Florida AI Bill of Rights plan."
¹³ Atterbury, "'We have a right to do this.'"
¹⁴ Ibid.
¹⁵ Ibid.
