Trump administration says Anthropic refusal was 'not protected speech' in US court

Date:
Wed, 18 Mar 2026 20:00:00 +0000

Description:
In a new filing, the Trump administration backs Hegseth's designation of Anthropic as a national supply chain risk.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Tech Radar Get the TechRadar Newsletter Sign up for
breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. You are
now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletter Pentagon defends blacklisting Anthropic as lawful national security move Companys lawsuit claims designation violates free speech and due process
Court battle looms as experts say Anthropic may have a strong case The Trump administration said the Pentagon did not violate Anthropics speech
protections under the US Constitutions First Amendment, when it blacklisted the AI company earlier this year.

In a court filing that the administration filed with the court earlier this week, it essentially backed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseths designation that Anthropic was a national security supply chain risk , and deemed blacklisting as justified and lawful, Reuters reported. In the last couple of months Anthropic, the company behind the famed Claude Artificial Intelligence solution , was in negotiations with the Pentagon over lucrative deals that would see Claude and other tools integrated into different US Department of Defense (DOD) projects. Article continues below You may like These actions
are unprecedented and unlawful: Anthropic sues Pentagon over supply chain
risk designation claims free speech and due process violations Trump just banned Anthropic from government use this is how we got here Anthropic goes to court over 'supply chain risk' label, as Claude usage rises Responding
with a lawsuit The negotiations allegedly broke down after Anthropic declined to remove the guardrails that were set up to protect the technology from
being used for autonomous weapons or domestic surveillance .

Soon after, the company was deemed a national security supply chain risk, to which Anthropic responded with a lawsuit.

In the lawsuit filed on March 9, the AI company said the unprecedented and unlawful designation violated its free speech and due process rights. At the same time, it said the designation also broke federal law that requires agencies to follow certain procedures when making these kinds of decisions.

"It was only when Anthropic refused to release the restrictions on the use of its products which refusal is conduct, not protected speech that the President directed all federal agencies to terminate their business relationships with Anthropic," it says in the filing. "No one has purported
to restrict Anthropics expressive activity," it was stated. Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get
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Anthropic asked the California federal court to block the Pentagons decision until a ruling is made. Reuters says that some legal experts believe the company has a strong case. The company responded to the filing saying
"seeking judicial review does not change our longstanding commitment to harnessing AI to protect our national security, but this is a necessary step to protect our business, our customers, and our partners."

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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/pro/security/trump-administration-says-anthropic-ref usal-was-not-protected-speech-in-us-court


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