Congress
Republican leading AI effort has ambitious timeline for getting his bill through the House
Rep. Jay Obernolte has an aggressive timeline for getting his new bipartisan Artificial Intelligence proposal taken up in the House — and a path for getting a congressional hearing on a major part of the plan.
In an interview Monday night, the California Republican said he hoped to turn the draft framework he unveiled last Thursday into multiple bills, with the first expected to be introduced in the coming weeks. Each bill would be considered by its committee of jurisdiction.
“One of the challenges that we have is that the bill crosses so many different policy committee jurisdictions,” he said. “So I think we’ve got to divide it up into different titles that are in the jurisdiction of various policy committees and hear those individually.”
He said that the majority of the provisions contained in his 269-page blueprint for regulating AI — including the authorization for the Center for AI Standards and Innovation and the National AI Research Resource — would fall under the purview of the Committee on Science, Space and Technology.
Incidentally, Obernolte said the Science panel — of which he is a member and chairs the Subcommittee on Research and Technology — was aiming to convene a hearing on AI at the end of the month, where his proposal could take center stage.
Obernolte ambitions, however, could quickly run up against reality: He and the Democratic co-architect of the proposal, Rep. Lori Trahan of Massachusetts, still need to sell their ideas to their respective party leaders and their colleagues, who are themselves sharply divided over what role the federal government should play in regulating the emerging technology.
But Monday night, Obernolte insisted he was continuing to talk to the White House about his effort, saying he was “cautiously optimistic” the administration would eventually back his bill, which would among other things override some state AI laws and require top developers to disclose the safety and security risks of their new models.
He also said he and Trahan were continuing to seek out additional co-sponsors beyond the original four who have committed to signing onto a formal piece of legislation: Reps. Suhas Subramanyam (D-Va.), Scott Peters (D-Calif.), Scott Franklin (R-Fla.) and Erin Houchin (R-Ind.)
Asked about feedback so far, Obernolte called it “pretty thoughtful,” and said criticism from both ends of the ideological spectrum has been fairly split.
“I would say that there’s a broad swath of people in the middle of the issue that are respected and thoughtful on the issue that have been praising the framework,” he said. “And then you’ve got voices on both sides — some that say that we’re not doing enough, some that say we’re doing too much — and the volume on both of those points of view have been about the same. So I think that’s an indication that we got it right.”
Rep. Max Miller issued a subpoena to his former father-in-law and fellow Ohio Republican, Sen. Bernie Moreno, in the latest escalation of a long-running family legal drama.
Pamela MacAdams, an attorney for Miller, reported to the Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court Monday that three subpoenas were served in Miller’s divorce case, according to court records. A person with knowledge of the subpoenas granted anonymity to comment on them said that two were sent to Moreno and his wife, Bridget.
Their daughter, Emily Moreno, was married to Miller, and the two remain embroiled in a nasty legal battle.
Spokespeople for Miller, Emily Moreno and Bernie Moreno did not immediately return requests for comment. TMZ first reported on the subpoenas.
Miller is seeking reelection in a competitive district, and his campaign has been marred by accusations of domestic abuse against Emily Moreno and their daughter. Miller has repeatedly denied the allegations and chose to remain in the race despite other Republican lawmakers pressuring him to withdraw his campaign.
The House Ethics Committee, which began an inquiry into Miller after Miller asked to be investigated, is currently in a preelection blackout period. During that period, which will continue through the midterms, the Ethics Committee doesn’t take any action against sitting members who could return next Congress.
Congress
Trump declares $1B canceled in ‘pocket rescission’ in another affront to Congress’ funding power
President Donald Trump informed congressional leaders Friday that he has unilaterally canceled almost $1 billion without Congress’ consent — employing a budget maneuver many lawmakers consider illegal.
In a move that will almost certainly set up an ugly government funding battle after the midterms, Trump has again claimed the power to execute a so-called “pocket rescission” to nix money Congress has already enacted. The money his administration will claw back is for for immigration services, support to foreign countries, education programs, health research efforts and assistance for businesses owned by minorities.
By law, the president is allowed to send Congress a request to rescind federal funding, then withhold that money for 45 days while lawmakers consider whether to approve, reject or ignore it. Trump administration officials also argue they have the power to cancel funding without any congressional action by sending Congress a rescission request with less than 45 days left in the fiscal year. The argument is that the money automatically gets canceled on Sept. 30, when funding lapses at the end of the fiscal year.
Last year, Trump canceled $4.9 billion in foreign aid.
The Senate’s top Republican appropriator, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, immediately blasted the move as illegal, saying in a statement Friday night that “any effort to rescind appropriated funds without congressional approval is a clear violation of the law.”
“This move shows that OMB intentionally withheld these funds for months to execute this unlawful cancellation of appropriations that were approved on a bipartisan basis and signed into law,” Collins added, pledging to work with other lawmakers “to address these illegal actions.”
Collins and other appropriators have already been on high alert in recent days, pressing multiple agencies about funding officials have yet to spend ahead of the expiration date.
Democrats are finally catching on to how to talk to young male voters in the lead-up to the midterms, but the party can still up its game, one battleground senator and potential 2028er said Friday.
Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) has been one of his party’s most outspoken critics on its handling of outreach to young men, who swung right and helped deliver the White House and both chambers of Congress to Republicans in 2024.
The party is now “definitely moving in the right direction,” Gallego said Friday.
“Like back in the day, I was like the only one,” putting out positions on men, Gallego said at a Washington event on young American men. “Now, like, it seems like everyone every week is coming out with a new position, new idea, which is great.”
Gallego has criticized Democrat’s failure to highlight mens’ struggles and their tendency to over-police mens’ ideas. But there are signs the political winds have shifted in his party’s favor.
A new Cygnal poll released with the event of men ages 18-30 who say they’re the most determined to vote revealed Democrats’ generic ballot lead over Republicans at 57%-40%, Blue Light News reported. The poll also said nearly 40 percent of respondents said they feel their lives are off track.
“We need to take the opportunity to invest in that portion of this country, to say that we care about them and actually try to change the trajectory of what’s happening with men in this country,” Gallego said at the symposium.
Still, the path for specific legislation targeting the needs of this demographic faces an incredibly tight calendar this Congress and is uncertain in the political landscape of next year.
A proposal from Gallego and Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) to establish a men’s health office within the Department of Health and Human Services, for example, has not advanced. Nor has bipartisan legislation from Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who also spoke at the event, targeting education outcomes, college investment transparency and dyslexic student support.
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