Facing a growing backlash over the boom in data center construction and widespread concern over the safety of artificial intelligence, Congress is set to depart Washington this week ahead of the midterm elections having accomplished nothing to address either issue. Eager to show they hear the public alarm over A.I. as they fight to keep their majority, Republicans in the Senate on Wednesday attempted to bring up a bill intended to insulate Americans from rising electricity costs tied to data centers. But Democrats blocked it, noting that the legislation was not enforceable and arguing it would do little to significantly curb energy prices.
The bill, sponsored by Senator Jon Husted of Ohio, a Republican in a difficult re-election battle, also would not impose any regulation on the use or deployment of artificial intelligence in the wake of several revelations that A.I. agents evaded safeguards meant to constrain them. With widespread disagreement over the best path forward but lawmakers eager to show voters progress on the issue before facing them in November, members of both parties have in recent days released a barrage of legislation, letters and statements of concern about A.I. and were planning a Senate hearing on “Rogue A.I.” on Wednesday afternoon as they rushed for the exits. I am not an A.I. doomer,” Senator Mark Warner, a Virginia Democrat who is also up for re-election, said.
Trump convened top technology executives at the White House on Tuesday, the group agreed only to voluntary safety agreements and to follow the president’s preference in rebranding A.I. as “super intelligence.” Some Republican senators have argued there is a need for stronger oversight. Senator Josh Hawley, Republican of Missouri, who has sponsored several pieces of legislation that would limit A.I., was set to hold a hearing Wednesday afternoon about rogue agents. None of the executives who attended the White House meeting were scheduled to attend.
But Republicans are also facing blowback for having included tax breaks in their major tax and spending cut legislation last year that benefited data center developers. Hawley also has introduced legislation that would bar data centers from taking advantage of the incentives. It is unclear whether Congress’s lack of action on the issue will have political consequences in November.
A poll conducted this month by The New York Times and Siena University found that neither party had a clear advantage with voters on A.I., even as voters broadly opposed the construction of data centers. Still, Democrats have sought to make data centers a central issue in competitive races across the country, including Mr. Before he was appointed to the Senate last year, Mr.
Husted, the state’s lieutenant governor, backed tax incentives for data centers. Democrats have spent millions on television advertisements labeling him as the “face of data centers.” In August, Senate Republicans’ campaign arm distributed a memo warning that the issue was threatening Mr. Husted’s re-election bid.
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