Yassamin Ansari
Role at the time: U.S. Representative for Arizona's 3rd congressional district, posting on her verified X account
Condemned
Statement summary
Rep. Yassamin Ansari of Arizona rejected the argument that Congress cannot regulate artificial intelligence because members are not experts in it, calling the position outrageous. She said Congress is not expert in pharmaceuticals, nuclear weapons or aviation either, yet has legislated for those industries and created federal agencies staffed with experts to carry out oversight, and said doing the same for AI is Congress's job.
“It's outrageous for Republicans to say we can't regulate AI because we're not experts. We're also not experts on pharmaceutical drugs, nuclear weapons, or aviation, but we've passed laws and regulated these industries, and have created federal agencies with experts to conduct oversight. That's our job, and that's exactly what we must do on AI.”