Inside Democrats' emerging AI playbook
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Illustration: Maura Kearns/Axios
With the midterms just over a year away, Democrats are sharpening an AI message focused on how the technology could widen economic divides and harm workers.
Why it matters: Democrats did little to put guardrails on AI when they had control of Congress. They're now decrying Republicans' hands-off approach to regulation and coming up with messaging of their own.
Driving the news: Democrats are zeroing in on how to help workers displaced by AI, though the details haven't been fleshed out.
- Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), the ranking member of the Senate Commerce Committee, has long focused on workforce development and plans to build upon efforts like the NSF AI Education Act, a bipartisan bill aimed at advancing STEM learning, her staffer told Maria.
What they're saying: At this week's AI+ DC Summit, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) said that AI should benefit everyone, not just companies.
- "The Democrats should say our vision is AI that actually helps tackle the economic divides. ... Our job as politicians should be to make sure that the AI future is one that has the economic future of every family and community," Khanna told Ashley Gold.
- "If you're going to have increased worker productivity, then workers should have a role in the share of those profits."
Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) this week released his "AI for America" plan, laying out his idea for what he calls the AI Horizon Fund.
- The trust fund — paid for by tech companies — would support union-led apprenticeships and coordinate state and federal efforts for workers' development.
- "The biggest thing is coming up with a plan for how you're going to retrain people for other jobs," Kelly told Axios' Ina Fried at the AI+ Summit, noting that he has no immediate plans to introduce legislation.
- "We do not want to find ourselves in a situation where there are 10 million people that lost their jobs through AI and they don't have a good option. That's not good for anyone," he said.
Catch up quick: The Democrats' comments echo the strategy that moderate House Democrats rolled out in July, which centered on middle-class American workers.
The other side: Republicans are focused on staying out of the way.
- Ted Cruz (R-Texas), the chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, recently introduced the AI SANDBOX Act, which would give developers space to test AI "without being held back by outdated or inflexible federal rules," his office has said.
- Cantwell's staffer said the bill is overly broad, as it gives too much authority to the Office of Science and Technology Policy to determine which federal rules are overly burdensome, but added that Cantwell plans to work with Cruz to narrow the bill down.
- Cruz also told Ashley this week that he wants to revive his effort to kill state-level AI regulation.
In the House, Rep. Jay Obernolte (R-Calif.) is working on legislation that incorporates recommendations from the House AI Task Force report released last December, his staffer told Maria.
- "The bill will help shape the national framework for how AI policy is handled going forward, with the goal of keeping the United States in the lead on this critical technology," the staffer said.
The bottom line: Upskilling, retraining and apprenticeship programs are nothing new for tech transitions — the CHIPS Act, for instance, included a variety of workforce initiatives that are now uncertain under President Trump.
- Whether it's taxes, a trust fund or something else, Democrats will be looking to get aligned on the details of their proposals ahead of the midterms.
