Schumer, Biden give AI the coast-to-coast treatment
Schumer, Biden give AI the coast-to-coast treatment
Whether in the nation’s capital or Silicon Valley, the Senate Majority Leader and president are using their high profiles to push for sweeping artificial intelligence regulation.
FIRST THINGS FIRST
Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is taking his gospel of comprehensive AI regulation beyond the halls of the US Capitol.
The Senate Majority Leader this afternoon will give a keynote speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies on the need for an all-hands-on-deck approach to developing bipartisan legislation to help shape the future of artificial intelligence in the US.
During the speech, Schumer is expected to build on the broad regulatory framework he announced in April to prevent the emerging technology from damaging the US while making sure America advances and leads the sector’s innovation.
“Congress cannot behave like ostriches in the sand when it comes to AI,” Schumer said on Tuesday in floor remarks previewing the speech. “Some might think it is better to ignore this issue or hope someone else figures it out because it’s so complex. But ignoring AI is untenable for Congress.”
Schumer’s keynote speech follows a meeting President Biden held in San Francisco on Tuesday with a group of outspoken experts on the impact of AI on jobs, children, and bias and prejudice. The leaders also discussed the risks posed by improperly regulated AI and the benefits it provided for education and medicine if the technology is safely built from the start.
“In seizing this moment, we need to manage the risks to our society, to our economy, and our national security,” the president said to reporters ahead of the meeting. “My administration is committed to safeguarding America’s rights and safety, from protecting privacy, to addressing bias and disinformation, to making sure AI systems are safe before they are released.”
He also renewed the call he made during his State of the Union for Congress to pass bipartisan privacy legislation to impose strict limits on the personal data social apps collect, ban targeted advertising to kids, and require companies to put health and safety first.
A White House official said the president’s sense of urgency on AI is in response to the significant increase in generative AI tools in the past several months.
“We don’t want to solve yesterday’s problem,” the official added. “We are staying ahead of the problem and tackling it with urgency.”
Jeff Zients, the White House chief of staff, is overseeing a process to rapidly develop executive actions the administration can take over the coming weeks. And White House principals have met to discuss AI two to three times a week to supplement the ongoing daily work being done across the White House and agencies.
White House officials are also working to secure additional commitments from leading AI companies to combat challenges from the government and the private sector side. And Vice President Kamala Harris next month will convene civil rights leaders, consumer protection groups, and civil society to continue the administration’s ongoing engagement on AI.
But Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus and one of Congress’s most vocal advocates for AI regulation, suggested in a Tuesday interview on MSNBC’s Morning Joe that the technology is too incomprehensible to members for Congress to take legislative action at this point.
“I’m not even sure we would know what we’re regulating at this point because it’s moving so quickly. If you look at all their applications that have came out since ChatGPT debuted, it’s hundreds and probably thousands by now,” Lieu said. “And so, some of these harms may in fact happen, but maybe they don’t happen. Or maybe we see some new harm. So I think it's good to have some time pass.”
Lieu proposed a commission of experts to advise Congress in the meantime.
“Because if we make a mistake as a member of Congress in writing legislation, you need another act to correct that.”
In the Senate, Leader Schumer has already scheduled three private briefings on artificial intelligence to lessen senators’ learning curves.
The first was last week and focused on the current state of AI. When senators return from the July 4th recess next month, they’ll receive a second briefing on where AI is headed in the future and how the US can stay at the forefront of innovation. And the series will culminate in a classified briefing on how adversaries will use AI against the US and how defense and intelligence agencies will use AI to keep Americans safe.
Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.) is also a proponent of the wait-and-see approach as AI continues to develop to deepen lawmakers’ understanding of the technology before Congress rushes to create the comprehensive framework that Leader Schumer and President Biden advocate for.
“I worry that if we take a comprehensive approach, we run the risk of stifling AI innovation,” Torres said in an interview with Supercreator last week. “And it’s in the interest of the United States for America to be the leader in AI. And if we handcuff ourselves to risks ceding a competitive advantage to China.”
Instead, Torres has championed an incremental approach to AI regulation starting with disclosure.
Earlier this month, he introduced a bill that would require all content generated by artificial intelligence to be accompanied by a mandatory disclaimer: “DISCLAIMER: this output has been generated by artificial intelligence.”
The Federal Trade Commission would be responsible for the enforcement of violations, which could result in civil penalties. The disclaimer would apply to videos, photos, text, audio, or any other AI-generated material.
“There's a danger in acting too slowly and acting too quickly. But AI has penetrated public consciousness on a scale and at a pace that we’ve never seen from a technology,” Torres said. “So the diffusion of the technology throughout the world is unprecedented and the issue is in no danger of suffering from neglect. The members of Congress and the general public are well aware of AI.”
👋🏾 Hi, hey, hello! It’s Wednesday, June 21, 2023. You’re reading Supercreator Daily, your morning guide to the politicians, power brokers, and policies shaping the American creator experience.
TODAY IN POLITICS
All times Eastern
10 a.m. The Senate will meet with two votes at 11:30 a.m. to override a veto of a resolution to overturn an Environmental Protection Agency regulation on trucking emissions and to advance the nomination of Natasha Merle to be US District Judge for the Eastern District of New York.
The House will also meet at 10 a.m. with first votes expected at 1:15 p.m. and last votes expected at 5 p.m. Under consideration: Bills to affirm support for a US trade agreement with Taiwan and expand small business health insurance options. Plus, a vote to override President Biden’s veto of a resolution to block his student debt relief program.
12 p.m. President Biden will receive his daily intelligence briefing.
1:05 p.m. The president will leave San Francisco to return to the White House at 6 p.m.
2:15 p.m. The Senate will vote to confirm the Merle nomination if it advanced during the morning vote series and vote to advance a tax treaty with Chile. First Lady Dr. Jill Biden and Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India will visit the National Science Foundation in Alexandria, Virginia.
4:30 p.m. Dr. Biden will host a media preview at the White House in advance of Thursday evening’s state dinner with Prime Minister Modi.
6:50 p.m. President Biden and Dr. Biden will welcome Prime Minister Modi to the White House.
7:15 p.m. The president and first lady will host a dinner for Prime Minister Modi.
The vice president is in Washington, DC and has no public events scheduled.
THEY DID THAT
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The Justice Department charged Hunter Biden for illegally possessing a handgun in 2018 and failing to timely file and pay taxes in 2017 and 2018 after a years-long investigation. Biden, the 53-year-old son of President Biden, pleaded guilty to the two tax misdemeanors and entered a probation agreement to avoid prosecution for illegally possessing the firearm while being a drug user. See more »
A federal judge struck down Arkansas’s ban on gender-affirming care. Judge James M. Moody Jr., who temporarily blocked the law from taking effect in June 2021, ruled the law unconstitutional and unenforceable in an 80-page ruling that cited the testimony of doctors, experts, and families that rely on GFC. See more »
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) refiled a resolution to censure Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) for his role in the impeachments of former President Donald Trump. 20 Republicans voted against it last week but enough may flip to support the resolution after Luna revised it. See more »
The Senate voted to confirm Julie Rikelman to be a federal appeals judge for the First Circuit Court of Appeals. Rikelman represented Jackson Women’s Health Organization in Dobbs, the Supreme Court case that overturned Roe v. Wade almost a year ago. See more »
Reps. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.) and Nanette Barragán (D-Calif.) introduced a bill intended to diversify the racial and ethnic makeup of the American aviation industry. The American Aviation Diversity Act would authorize $7.5 million in funding for an internship program to serve as a pipeline to well-paying aviation careers for historically underrepresented minorities. See more »
Rep. Espaillat with Reps. David Trone (D-Md.) and Emmanuel Cleaver (Mo.) and Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) also led a letter to the Homeland Security Department urging the agency to streamline to process for reviewing petitions for unjustly deported individuals. The lawmakers say this would give these individuals a more meaningful chance to come home and reunite with their loved ones and communities. See more »
Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) and Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Peter Welch (D-Vt.) introduced a bill that would prevent Americans from paying more for prescription drugs than people in other developed countries do. Under the End Price Gouging for Medications Act drug companies would be required to offer prescription drugs at the established reference price to all individuals in the US market or face civil penalties for each year in which the violation occurs and for each drug. See more »
Reps. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) and Lori Chavez-DeRemer invited members of Congress, staff, and the press to wear sneakers to the Capitol today for the first “Sneaker Day on the Hill.” Moskowitz and Chavez-DeRemer, two first-term members, launched the Congressional Sneaker Caucus in April to promote their shared love of sneakers and their impact on American culture and fitness. See more »
The House Democrats’ campaign arm raised $7.6 million in May, a $5 million year-to-date increase than at this point in 2019, the last off-year leading up to a presidential election. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has raised $54.5 million to date with $28 million cash on hand and no debt as it works to flip the five House seats Democrats need to retake the majority. See more »
President Biden praised a new rule proposed by the Federal Communications Commission that would require cable and satellite TV providers to give consumers the all-in price for the service they’re offering upfront. The proposal is the latest action by the administration to crack down on junk fees and would prevent providers from adding extra “broadcast TV” or “regional sports” chargers to the price of base service. See more »
The US government designated as global terrorists two ISIS leaders responsible for the rape and torture of Yazidi women and girls and two South Sudan-based individuals who oversaw the rape and murder of civilians during the civil war. The Biden administration said the designations are an effort to promote accountability for those people who violate or abuse the human rights of women and girls. See more »
Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-Pa.) announced I-95 will reopen in Philadelphia this weekend just two weeks after a tanker truck caught fire underneath the highway. Repair efforts were initially expected to take months but Shapiro expressed optimism the timeline could be expedited due to close coordination between local, state, and federal governments. See more »
Duke University announced beginning this fall it would offer free tuition to students from North Carolina and South Carolina whose families make $150,000 per year or less. In addition to free tuition, Duke will provide additional financial assistance for the costs of housing, meals, course materials, and other campus expenses for undergraduate students from the Carolinas whose family incomes are $65,000 or less. See more »
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