Criticizing AI presents a political dilemma because it's a primary driver of stock market gains. With more Americans viewing the market as a barometer of their financial health, politicians risk alienating voters if an anti-AI stance is perceived as a threat to their retirement accounts.
Despite populist rhetoric, the administration needs the economic stimulus and stock market rally driven by AI capital expenditures. In return, tech CEOs gain political favor and a permissive environment, creating a symbiotic relationship where power politics override public concerns about the technology.
The national political conversation on AI isn't led by D.C. think tanks but by local communities protesting the impact of data centers on electricity prices and resources. This organic, grassroots opposition means national politicians are playing catch-up to voter sentiment.
Unlike the early internet era led by new faces, the AI revolution is being pushed by the same leaders who oversaw social media's societal failures. This history of broken promises and eroded trust means the public is inherently skeptical of their new, grand claims about AI.
Public backlash against AI isn't a "horseshoe" phenomenon of political extremes. It's a broad consensus spanning from progressives like Ryan Grimm to establishment conservatives like Tim Miller, indicating a deep, mainstream concern about the technology's direction and lack of democratic control.
AI's justification for massive energy and capital consumption is weakening as its public-facing applications pivot from world-changing goals to trivial uses like designing vacations or creating anime-style images. This makes the high societal costs of data centers and electricity usage harder for the public to accept.
Like railroads, AI promises immense progress but also concentrates power, creating public fear of being controlled by a new monopoly. The populist uprisings by farmers against railroad companies in the 1880s offer a historical playbook for how a widespread, grassroots political movement against Big Tech could form.
Vance's political future is complicated by a fundamental split on the right. He must navigate the demands of his pro-AI, tech-focused donors against the strong anti-AI sentiment of influential media figures like Tucker Carlson and his broader MAGA base, making it a critical political challenge.