February 2, 2026
Secret memo gets blown off course
Court orders restart of all US offshore wind power construction
Judges say build, internet laughs at “classified” shutdown
TLDR: Judges let all five US offshore wind projects keep building despite a “classified” halt, calling the justification unconvincing. Commenters mocked the secrecy, worried about climate and waste, and argued wind vs. solar—proof this fight matters for clean energy progress and public trust.
Courts just told five US offshore wind projects to get back to work, and the internet is cackling at the Trump administration’s “it’s classified” excuse. Multiple judges reviewed the secret memo behind the stoppage and weren’t convinced. One even noted the government let 44 turbines keep spinning while blocking repairs—cue the community’s collective eye-roll and memes about “top-secret seagulls.” The mood: relief that construction resumes, rage at delays, and jokes for days.
Commenters went full popcorn mode. ggm tried to steelman the risk, wondering if offshore cables to the mainland are a weak point, while pjdesno framed it as a classic “takings” battle—government trying to yank investments in a legal system that hates that. einpoklum delivered the viral line—“we could tell you, but then we’d have to kill you”—then grimly reminded everyone that climate emissions aren’t dropping fast enough. softwaredoug warned these could become the biggest “mostly done” projects ever canceled, “a monument to US incompetency.” Meanwhile, sandworm101 dropped a contrarian hot take: wind is yesterday’s tech, solar’s sprinting ahead—so maybe let wind die if it supercharges solar.
The thread split hard: Build everything, now vs Pick the winner. Around it all, snark and memes scorched the “classified” claim, with links to reporting that judges weren’t buying it (NYT, WBUR, AP). Verdict from the comments: stop the drama, build the turbines, and quit hiding behind “classified” winds
Key Points
- •Courts in three jurisdictions, before four judges, granted temporary injunctions allowing all five US offshore wind projects to resume construction.
- •The Department of the Interior halted turbine installation citing a classified national security risk.
- •Judges who reviewed the classified report were not convinced by the national security justification.
- •One court highlighted the inconsistency of allowing 44 existing turbines to operate while blocking repairs and completion of others.
- •A prior executive order blocking offshore wind permitting was already struck down as arbitrary and capricious.