Dem rep urges Johnson: 'Bring us back to Congress' to discuss AI

Greg Stanton wants Mike Johnson to “bring us back to Congress” for AI. Fine. But it is hard not to notice the timing: Democrats spent the last year treating the House like a stage for cable hits, and now they have discovered the joy of being “in session” when the topic is shiny and scary. If AI is an emergency, act like it. That means specifics, not another Sunday show warning and a vague call to “take it seriously.”

We do not doubt AI is moving fast. It is. Models are getting more capable, and the misuse cases are real: deepfakes in elections, automated fraud, mass hacking, the whole mess. But Congress has a habit of turning complicated tech into either a moral panic or a bill that accidentally locks in Big Tech’s advantage. The worst outcome is a rushed, lobbyist-written AI law that “protects the public” by making it impossible for anyone but the biggest firms to comply.

Johnson should hear Stanton out, but he should also demand a grown-up agenda: targeted hearings, a clear list of risks, and narrow fixes that can pass. Start with transparency for political deepfakes, stronger penalties for AI-enabled identity theft, and real guardrails for federal agencies buying these tools. And if Democrats are serious, they can stop using “AI safety” as a backdoor to regulate speech online. Do the boring work, on the record, and don’t turn it into a power grab..