Theo Von calls AI provision in GOP's One Big Beautiful Bill “really sketchy”
JD Vance: “To be honest with you, I don't think that's going to make it in the final bill. ... I can kind of go both ways on this because I don't want California's progressive regulations to control artificial intelligence.”
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From the June 7, 2025, edition of This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von
THEO VON (HOST): Part of the bill that people are talking about is there's like the AI stuff, right? Like the government, like, um, there's a ban — is that we're going to spend a lot of money with AI in order to advance, like, bring our government and technologies up to code, really.
VICE PRESIDENT JD VANCE (GUEST): Yeah. I know what you're talking about. Yeah.
VON: And then also, it says in there that there's a ban that, at state levels, they couldn't prosecute some of these AI companies, right?
VANCE: Yeah, so this is —
VON: That sounds really sketchy.
VANCE: I know what you're talking about, yeah.
VON: And this is in USA Today. I'll just read it. “The ban is tucked into a section of the bill that would allocate $500 million over the next 10 years to modernize government systems with the help of AI and automation technologies. The ban would not only prevent new state-led regulations of AI, but would also block dozens of states from enforcing preexisting AI regulations and oversight structures.” It feels scary.
...
VANCE: The reason that provision is in there is because you think about, like — think about how woke the Google searches got. Remember when you, like, searched what does George Washington looked like and it showed you, like, a picture of Black dude?
VON: Oh yeah. Or like a little Japanese George Washington or something?
VANCE: So the idea is you use — you basically have a federal regulation that prevent — a federal regulation that prevents like California from having a super progressive set of regulations on artificial intelligence.
VON: Okay.
VANCE: That that's the argument for it. The argument against it is that if the feds aren't protecting artists, then you're not going to be able to protect artists either. And so I, honestly, I don't think the provision, to be honest with you, I don't think that's going to make it in the final bill, but I usually have a pretty strong view on most things. I can kind of go both ways on this because I don't want California's progressive regulations to control artificial intelligence.
VON: Yeah.
VANCE: I also agree with Marsha [Blackburn] and Bill [Hagerty] that you want to protect, you know, country artists in Nashville from having their crap stolen by AI.