Associated Press, by Ali Swenson
NEW YORK (AP) — As Republican tax cuts and spending bills defended by President Donald Trump passed through the US Senate, it appears a controversial bid is on the way to stop the state from regulating artificial intelligence for a decade.
But as the bill approached its final vote, a relentless campaign of conservative constellations, including Republican governors, lawmakers, think tanks and social groups, was eroding support. Conservative activist Mike Davis appeared on the right-wing podcaster Steve Bannon show, urging viewers to call the senator to refuse this “ai pardon” for the “trillion dollar technician.”
He also texted Trump directly, saying Davis had advised the president to remain neutral on the issue despite characterising great pressure from White House I Zal David Sachs and more from Commerce Chief Howard Lutnick and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.
Conservatives who are passionate about removing this provision were fighting others in the party fighting others because they thought the country was essential for the country to compete with China in the race for AI control. The split marked whether the latest and perhaps most notable split within the GOP would continue to place guardrails on emerging technologies or minimize such interference.
Ultimately, it revealed the major impact of the Republican segment, which saw guardrail supporters win and began to distrust Big Technology. They believe that citizens must be free to protect their citizens from potential harm in the industry, including AI, social media, and emerging technologies.
“The tension in the conservative movement is obvious,” said Adam Thierer of R Street Institute, a conservative think tank. Thierer first proposed the idea for the AI Moratorium last year. He focused on the “animus surrounding big technology” among many Republicans.
“That was the differentiator.”
The last minute battle between conservatives and conservatives
Heritage Foundation, children’s safety groups, Republican state lawmakers, governors and attorney general all opposed the AI moratorium. Democrats, Tech Watchdogs and some tech companies also opposed it.
Sensing the moment was Monday night, Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee opposed AI regulations and tried to stroll through the water, and worked with Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington to propose a proposal. By the morning, the regulations had been removed by a 99-1 vote.
With a whirlwind end of clauses initially supported by House and Senate leaders, the White House disappointed other conservatives who felt it had given China a major competitor for AI.
Ryan Fournier, a Trump student and chief marketing officer for the startup’s Uncensored AI, supports the moratorium, writing that “blue states like California and New York will stop us from passing our future to Communist China.”
“Republicans are… I get it,” he said in an interview, but added that to make AI innovation successful, you need a “set of 50, not 50.”
AI insists on fearing patchwork of state rules
Figures from tech companies, tech trade groups, venture capitalists and several Trump administrations have expressed support for provisions that would have prevented states from passing their own AI regulations for years. They argued that by letting the state lead in the absence of federal standards, innovators get hooked on a patchwork of confusing rules.
“Ensuring American businesses can develop cutting-edge technology for our military, infrastructure and critical industries without interference from anti-violating politicians,” Commerce Secretary Lutnick said. AI Czar Sacks also publicly supported this scale.
After the Senate passed the bill without an AI clause, the White House responded to the president’s position to investigate the bag.
Accepting his provisional defeat on the Senator’s floor, Cruz pointed out how much it is to hear the news, which made China, Liberal politicians and “radical left-wing groups.”
However, Blackburn noted that the federal government failed to pass legislation that addressed key AI concerns, such as keeping children safe and copyright protections.
“But do you know who passed it?” she said. “state.”
Conservatives want to win the AI race, how do you oppose it?
During the Covid-19 pandemic and surrounding elections, social media companies have mistrust large technologies in what they see as suppressing speeches, saying tech companies should not get a free pass, especially for those pose as much risk as AI.
Many who opposed the moratorium also cultivated the right to preserve the state’s rights, but refuted that AI transcends state boundaries and Congress has the power to regulate interstate commerce.
Minnesota Republican state legislator Eric Lucero noted that many other industries have already navigated various regulations established by both state and local jurisdictions.
“I think everyone in the conservative movement agrees that they need to defeat China,” said Daniel Cochrane of the Heritage Foundation. “I think we have different prescriptions to do so.”
Many argued that in the absence of federal law, states are best set up to protect citizens from the potential harms of AI technology.
“We don’t know what AI will be able to do over the next decade. It’s potentially dangerous to tie free reins and state hands,” Senator Marjorie Taylor Greene wrote in X.
Calling for federal regulations
Another Republican, Texas Sen. Angela Paxton, wrote a letter to Cruz and his counterpart, Sen. John Cornyn, urging them to remove the suspension.
She and other conservatives said certain federal standards would help clarify the landscape around AI and resolve some of the party’s disagreements.
However, with Moratrium dead and Republicans holding only a narrow majority in both Congresses, it is unclear whether they can agree to a set of standards and lead to the development of burgeoning technologies.
In an email to The Associated Press, Paxton said he would like to see limited federal AI laws that “set some clear guardrails” on national security and interstate commerce, but the state has made it possible to address issues affecting residents.
“When it comes to technologies that are as powerful and potentially dangerous as AI, we need to be careful to silence state-level efforts to protect consumers and children,” she said.
Associated Press Writer Matt Brown in Washington contributed to this report.
Original issue: July 3, 2025 10:14am EDT
