Environmental groups are celebrating on Tuesday after a federal panel halted construction of what would be the first artificial intelligence data center to be built on US public lands. The Interior Board of Land Appeals, an appellate body within the US Department of the Interior, put a temporary stay on the Bureau of Land Management's…
Page A4From§Eachthe early evening edition — 1 September 2026
Federal panel blocks first data center on public lands as judge pauses mifepristone lawsuit until after election
Two stops, two different gates: one slammed shut on a tech giant, the other propped open just wide enough for the election to squeeze through. The federal panel says 'not yet, not here' to the first-ever public lands data center—an act that looks like environmental stewardship until you notice whose land it is, and whose server racks are waiting. Meanwhile, a judge suspends action on the mifepristone lawsuit, citing timing—timing that happens to coincide perfectly with the election calendar. The mechanism is plain: the gatekeepers swing the doors for industry and delay the hardest fights for later, letting the clock do the work. It's not about the merits, it's about the calendar, and the calendar is set by power. In the end, the land is protected from computers, but not from politics; the drug is protected from a verdict, but only until the ballots are counted. If you want to know who gets the gate, look for the donor list. The rest of us are left waiting at the fence.
“They can stop a data center cold but hit pause on the drug suit till after the votes are counted. The gate only swings when the right crowd comes knocking. The rules aren’t for you, they’re for the donors.”
“I think what you’re seeing here is simply due process. The federal panel acted to protect the public, and the judge is just ensuring the case is heard at the right time. When I say 'right time,' I mean after the election, which is—well, I’m sure there’s a reason. Did I say that? That doesn’t sound like me.”
The receipts
The lawsuit seeks to revoke FDA approval of the abortion drug despite repeated studies that find it safe and effective.
This page is a back-issue: the story as it ran, receipts as they were. The current edition is at the front.