Do-Nothing Republicans Did Nothing So Now Gavin Newsom Controls Keys To Most Critical Rules

Republicans may have unintentionally handed California Gov. Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers influence over some of the most consequential rules for artificial intelligence, according to commentary by John Loftus, an editor at large. The argument rests on a Wednesday report from Politico that a federal AI safety bill, drafted by Anthropic and now being shopped to lawmakers on Capitol Hill, draws on California law directly, according to Daily Caller.

Anthropic's draft is built around risk thresholds, meaning the levels at which the government would be allowed to step in and block an AI model. Loftus says Newsom, a Democrat, and the California legislature had a free chance to build the foundation first, and so got to set the thresholds he calls arbitrary, which could end up prompting federal intervention. Republicans, he argues, could have acted first. His column, published October 21, 2026, faults Republican inaction for leaving that opening to Democrats, and says Newsom now effectively holds the keys to the rules.

Summarized by PolitiKool from Daily Caller’s reporting. Read the full story at Daily Caller →