Senator Marsha Blackburn has rescinded her backing for a proposed five-year pause on state and local artificial intelligence legislation, just a day after reaching the deal with Senate Commerce Chair Ted Cruz.
Blackburn’s decision places her alongside Senators Josh Hawley of Missouri and Rand Paul of Kentucky, who have also voiced opposition to the measure.
In a statement released Tuesday, Blackburn emphasized, “While I appreciate Chairman Cruz’s efforts to find acceptable language that allows states to protect their citizens from the abuses of AI, the current language is not acceptable to those who need these protections the most.”
She further warned, “This provision could allow Big Tech to continue to exploit kids, creators, and conservatives. Until Congress passes federally preemptive legislation like the Kids Online Safety Act and an online privacy framework, we can’t block states from making laws that protect their citizens.”
The original compromise crafted by Blackburn and Cruz had been approved by the Senate parliamentarian.
On Monday, Senators Maria Cantwell of Washington and Ed Markey of Massachusetts introduced an amendment to strip the AI moratorium from the larger bill.
Hellbound and Down 