"Heavens, No": The Lawmakers Regulating AI Without Using It
transcript
show notes
Maxine Waters can't remember if she uses AI, and The Democracy Draft wants your midterm bracket. 47 days out, the vibes are bullish.
Primary season is officially over. Brian is bullish on the House and more bearish on the Senate than most forecasters, and Glennis is spending the final 47 days touring Senate battlegrounds. They get into Speaker Mike Johnson's promised plan for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid next year. They also cover the ProPublica report that a Russian oligarch close to Putin paid for Donald Trump Jr.'s Bahamas wedding celebrations, and the Supreme Court keeping the Postal Service out of mail ballots for November.
Then AI. An Anthropic researcher quit with a warning, AI CEOs started asking for a slowdown, and Trump called AI regulation a hoax. Meanwhile, Axios asked Congress whether they actually use AI. Sen. Roger Wicker said "Heavens, no," Rep. Frank Pallone reached for a heroin analogy, and Rep. Maxine Waters couldn't remember. Brian makes the case for generational change on the issues that will define the next decade.
Also: Clickbait or Double-Click tackles four headlines:
- Mitch McConnell back in the Senate after three months
- Kash Patel refusing to rule out FBI agents at polling sites
- The $9.5 billion DOGE-era paid leave bill
- Republicans branding Democrats as communists, where Brian's verdict might surprise you
The Oath Candidate of the Week is you. The Democracy Draft is March Madness for the midterms. Pick the winners of the cycle's top races, from Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan to Troy Jackson in Maine, and the closest bracket wins $4,000. It's free to enter at thedemocracydraft.com, and you can start side leagues. Then a Good Vibe Goodbye from Wisconsin, where the state Supreme Court heard challenges to a congressional map that gives Republicans six of eight seats. That fight could mean fair districts by 2028.
New episodes of Vibes Only are available for download first thing every Thursday morning - hit FOLLOW and we'll keep you informed for the midterms.
EPISODE RESOURCES/LINKS
Oath Candidate of the Week: Oath’s Democracy Draft
Reporting Referenced: Don Jr’s Wedding Was Paid For By Russians - ProPublica
Clickbait or Double-Click 1: Mitch McConnell Returns to Senate After Three Month Absence - The New York Times
Clickbait or Double-Click 2: Kash Patel Suggests FBI Agents Could Go to Election Polling Sites - The New York Times
Clickbait or Double-Click 3: Thanks to DOGE, Federal Employees Got Paid Billions to Not Work - TIME
Clickbait or Double-Click 4: Republicans, Facing Midterm Peril, Try to Brand Democrats as Communists - The New York Times
Good Vibe Goodbye: WI State Supreme Court to take up challenge to congressional maps this week
