theinnermostloop.substack.com/p/welcome-to-april-16-2026
2 corrections found
Federal agencies are quietly sidestepping the White House’s ban on Anthropic to test Claude Mythos for cyber defense
This overstates the legal situation. Before this post was published, a federal injunction had paused implementation of the White House directive, and GSA said it restored Anthropic to the pre-ban status quo.
Full reasoning
The post describes agencies as sidestepping an operative White House ban. But by April 3, 2026, GSA said that, pursuant to a preliminary injunction issued on March 26, 2026, it was "pausing the government's implementation of the President's directive" and "restoring Anthropic technology to the status quo in effect prior to February 27, 2026." GSA also said it would continue allowing Anthropic integrations and offer Anthropic models in GSA Chat.
That means federal use of Anthropic was not simply happening by secretly evading an active government-wide ban at the time of publication. There may still have been ongoing litigation and separate Pentagon-related disputes, but the specific claim that agencies were "sidestepping the White House’s ban" is misleading because the government-wide directive had already been paused by court order.
2 sources
- GSA Issues Statement on Anthropic Preliminary Injunction | GSA
Pursuant to a preliminary injunction ... pausing the government's implementation of the President's directive, GSA is withdrawing this announcement and restoring Anthropic technology to the status quo in effect prior to February 27, 2026.
- Trump administration appeals ruling that blocked Pentagon action against Anthropic over AI dispute | AP News
The Trump administration is appealing a judge's order blocking the federal government from taking punitive measures ... She also said she was blocking enforcement of President Donald Trump's social media directive ordering all federal agencies to stop using Anthropic and its chatbot Claude.
becoming the first state to ban construction of data centers drawing over 20 MW until late 2027
This is premature. Maine’s legislature had passed LD 307, but official state pages showed it had only been passed to be enacted and sent along in the legislature, not yet signed into law.
Full reasoning
The post states that Maine had already "becom[e] the first state to ban" such data centers. But Maine's own legislative pages show a less final status.
The Legislature's summary page for LD 307 says the last House and Senate actions on April 14, 2026 were "PASSED TO BE ENACTED". That is not the same thing as already having become law. A separate Maine House Democrats page from the same day says the Legislature "sends bill ... to governor's desk" and quotes the sponsor saying she is "hopeful Governor Mills will sign it into law."
So, at least based on the official state sources available here, Maine had passed the bill through the Legislature, but had not yet already 'become' a state with an enacted ban.
2 sources
- Summary of LD 307 | State of Maine Legislature
Last House Action 4/14/2026 - PASSED TO BE ENACTED ... Last Senate Action 4/14/2026 - PASSED TO BE ENACTED, in concurrence PREVAILED.
- Legislature sends bill establishing temporary pause on data centers to governor's desk | House Democrats
Today, the Maine House and Senate gave final approval ... I am hopeful Governor Mills will sign it into law. ... As amended, LD 307 would temporarily prohibit ... a data center with a load of 20 megawatts. The moratorium would last until Nov. 1, 2027.