{"slug": "the-unholy-alliance-against-american-progress-on-ai", "title": "The unholy alliance against American progress on AI", "summary": "The Future of Life Institute held its \"Pro-Human Assembly\" event on Tuesday, drawing together Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Steve Bannon, and teachers' union president Randi Weingarten in what a Washington Examiner opinion column characterizes as an anti-AI coalition spanning the socialist Left and populist Right. Sanders has introduced the \"Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act,\" which proposes a federal moratorium on AI, a new cabinet-level bureaucracy to monitor server rooms, and up to 20 years in prison for developers of frontier AI models. The column also cites former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon, who worked at the company less than four months before quitting over concerns about superintelligence, and argues the movement benefits the Chinese Communist Party as the U.S. and China compete for AI supremacy.", "body_md": "If you ever find yourself nodding along with socialist Sen. [Bernie Sanders](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/tag/bernie-sanders/) (I-VT), populist hack [Steve Bannon](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/tag/steve-bannon/),  and teachers’ union boss [Randi Weingarten](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/tag/randi-weingarten/), it may be time to go home and rethink your life. \n\nIt turns out that all of the [worst people](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/technology/4725625/bernie-sanders-steve-bannon-jacob-coxon-ai-regulation/) you know hate artificial intelligence. Future of Life Institute’s “Pro-Human Assembly” event on Tuesday proves, once again, that politics make strange bedfellows. It also highlights the horseshoe theory in action. The furthest reaches of the socialist Left and populist Right have joined forces in an attempt to bring [American AI](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/editorials/4726105/slow-down-race-regulate-ai/) to a screeching halt. \n\n## Stay informed.Stay ahead.\n\nJoin Washington Examiner for unlimited access to the news, analysis, and commentary that matter most.\n\n[See Options](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/subscribe/digital/)\n\nAlready a member? [Log in](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/sign-in/)\n\nPolitical commentators online like to label anything they don’t like an “op,” often to discredit their political opponents. Here, however, we have an entrenched labor boss and an unholy alliance between the radical Left and isolationist Right, flanked by supposed expert [Jacob Coxon](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/technology/4718202/anthropic-researcher-quits-fear-artificial-intelligence/), who worked for Anthropic for less than four months before quitting his job over his alleged concerns over the potential development of superintelligence. This movement is not about protecting trucking jobs or “saving humanity.” It is fundamentally [anti-progress](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/columnists/4719172/case-against-ai-hysteria/), flies in the face of economic realities, and, intentionally or not, represents a massive gift to the Chinese Communist Party. If the latter doesn’t give the game away, as America and [China](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/tag/china/) grapple for [AI](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/tag/artificial-intelligence/) supremacy, I don’t know what to tell you. \n\nBernie Sanders [introduced](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/technology/4711885/bernie-sanders-bill-ban-artificial-superintelligence/) the “Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act,” a draconian piece of [legislation](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/senate/4726763/congress-is-wrestling-with-ai-development-here-are-five-bills-to-watch/#google_vignette) proposing a federal moratorium on AI, a new cabinet-level bureaucracy to monitor server rooms, and up to 20 years in prison for developers who push the boundaries of frontier AI models.\n\nSanders, an avowed Marxist, has never met a communist regime he didn’t like, honeymooned in the Soviet Union, and has complained that Americans have too many options when shopping for deodorant. [Steve Bannon’s](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/restoring-america/fairness-justice/4453110/the-rights-steve-bannon-problem-epstein-files/) willingness to run PR for the late sex offender and human trafficker Jeffrey Epstein provides a window into the man’s moral compass. He also spent years in lockstep with [Miles Guo](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/1003966/bannon-financier-and-exiled-chinese-businessman-guo-wengui-files-for-bankruptcy/) (also known as Guo Wengui), the exiled Chinese tycoon who is spending 30 years in federal prison for orchestrating a $1 billion international fraud scheme.\n\nBannon took over $1 million from Guo-linked entities, flew around the country on Guo’s private jets, and was famously arrested by federal agents for his “We Build the Wall” fraud charges while lounging on Guo’s 150-foot luxury yacht, the *Lady May*. Federal prosecutors named Bannon as an unindicted co-conspirator in Guo’s massive racketeering case.  \n\n“I am the Hoax Buster, and I’m right now breaking another Hoax — That AI is going to take over, consume, and destroy the World, and that Robots will be marching into our Cities, and getting rid of us all! This is even wilder than the RUSSIA, RUSSIA, RUSSIA HOAX, or the Global Warming Scam,” President Trump posted Tuesday morning on Truth Social.\n\n[Trump has been](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/white-house/4726164/trump-says-fears-ai-taking-over-world-destroying-humanity-hoax/) consistently correct on AI and the dangers of losing the AI race to China. If America hits the brakes on AI development to appease a coalition of reactionary populists and progressive luddites, the technology will not cease to exist. It will simply be built in Beijing, governed by authoritarian rules, and deployed against American interests worldwide. \n\n[HASAN PIKER WANTS TO CAMPAIGN FOR AOC IN 2028](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/presidential/4733155/hasan-piker-campaign-aoc-2028/)\n\nHouse Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) echoed the president over the weekend, warning that federal over-regulation would hand the AI race directly to [China](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/op-eds/4726356/us-china-exploitation-ai-race-model-security-needs-control-extraction/). There is a reason why Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale dubbed the anti-tech coalition the “BBC”: Bernie, Bannon, and the Chinese Communist Party. \n\n*Brady Leonard (**@bradyleonard**) is a writer, musician, and host of* [The No Gimmicks Podcast.](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-no-gimmicks-podcast/id1207009705)", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-unholy-alliance-against-american-progress-on-ai", "canonical_source": "https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/restoring-america/4733511/unholy-alliance-american-progress-ai/", "published_at": "2026-09-18 17:27:12+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-09-18 17:53:57.435123+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["ai-policy", "ai-safety", "artificial-intelligence"], "entities": ["Future of Life Institute", "Bernie Sanders", "Steve Bannon", "Randi Weingarten", "Jacob Coxon", "Anthropic", "Washington Examiner", "Chinese Communist Party"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-unholy-alliance-against-american-progress-on-ai", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-unholy-alliance-against-american-progress-on-ai.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-unholy-alliance-against-american-progress-on-ai.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-unholy-alliance-against-american-progress-on-ai.jsonld"}}