Thune sees role for Congress on AI — Trump does not

Majority Leader John Thune is asserting Congress' prerogative to act on AI — but he's urging a "light touch" even in the face of "consequential risks."

Why it matters: On his first day back after a five-week break, Thune (R-S.D.) outlined his vision for congressional action on an issue President Trump has dismissed as a "hoax."

• "Congress has a job to do," Thune said.
• "I think there are some potential consequential risks associated with AI," Thune told reporters when asked if he believes AI poses an existential threat to humanity. He added, "Guardrails there make sense to me" about cutting-edge, frontier AI models.
• But Thune also said that "there are always people who are creating a worst-case-scenario-type conversation out there."
• Driving the news: An AI panic is rippling through Congress, but mostly on the Democratic side, with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) calling to "slow down the pace of development" of AI to avoid a potentially catastrophic outcome.
• Publicly, Trump is professing not to be concerned and insists that he should have the sole authority to regulate AI.
• "The only control or 'guardrails' that AI needs is a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT, and the U.S.A. has that, in spades," he posted on his Truth Social account Monday morning.

Zoom out: Republicans aren't questioning Trump's ability to lead the country's approach to AI regulation, but they are suggesting that Congress has a role to play.

• And they aren't ruling out legislation.
• "So we may need to do something," Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said. "But there are existing guardrails, and corporate responsibility is a big part of this."

Zoom in: Thune said he spoke with Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) on Saturday night about their AI bill, which would force companies creating frontier AI models to guard against catastrophic risks and submit to federal oversight.

• Thune said he has been working with Commerce Chair Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) to reintroduce the bill "hopefully soon."
• House GOP leaders, meanwhile, have given no indication they plan to keep the chamber in session after this week to work on AI-related legislation.
• "I don't know that staying in more weeks in September is going to be the catalyst for that," Rep. Jay Obernolte (R-Calif.), the lead Republican on the FRONTIER Act, told Axios.

Between the lines: Before this weekend, much of the AI debate in Washington — and in Senate races — was focused on data centers and the amount of electricity they consume.

• Republicans, as well as the White House, are eager to prove to voters that they won't face higher utility bills caused by data centers and their need for megawatts.
• Thune left open the possibility of the Senate voting on a version of the House's Ratepayer Protection Act, which is aimed at ensuring communities are not forced to pay more for increased energy use by data centers.
• The House is expected to vote on the bill Tuesday.

What we're hearing: Thune is uniquely prepared for the AI discussion, having worked on AI legislation for years.

• Before he joined leadership, he chaired the Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over AI.
• His familiarity with the complicated and evolving subject comes in contrast to many lawmakers who have little experience with AI.
• Johnson even said on a podcast he has never used an AI chatbot. "Congress is not the expert on this subject because we are not in the frontier labs with them," he told reporters Monday evening.

The bottom line: Thune is signaling he's open to some regulation that wouldn't stifle innovation.

• "I think you also want to make sure that the more advanced threats can be mitigated," he told reporters.
• "I do think we are in a race with China, and I think there's huge upside, obviously, with AI as well."