Ted Cruz Controls Senate AI Markup Agenda

Senate Commerce Committee Chair Senator Ted Cruz will convene a markup on AI legislation next month, Politico reports. Cruz told Politico, "This markup is designed to move legislation that has a real chance of passing into law," and said he is vetting bills based on "what bipartisan agreement and consensus can be reached." Politico also reports Cruz asked GOP committee members to submit proposals and that his aides, speaking on background, said he favors "targeted" federal action in "truly novel circumstances" such as catastrophic risk and deepfakes. Reporting by Gizmodo and Politico notes committee members say they have not been briefed on what Cruz will advance. Coverage recalls Cruz's previous push for a state-level AI moratorium, opposed by groups including the NAIC and later removed from major bills, per Washington Post and NAIC filings.