Pirate's Cove

I can understand some of the concerns on data centers, particularly for water quality and noise, but, an election issue? Sounds more like a 1st World Issue

American anxiety about AI is becoming a political force in the midterms

Across the United States, political candidates are grappling with an issue that has never before featured widely in American political life: artificial intelligence.

You can see it in candidates of both major parties trying to one-up each other with crackdowns on data centers.

Incumbents fighting to survive in toss-up districts racing to display their takes on AI and national security.

And progressive Democrats stress testing voter messaging about job-destroying automation.

Yeah, that one is about Islamist El-Sayed writing “We need real AI regulation to create guardrails and protect the ability for young people to have a job.” Seems he wants Government to run the economy

Hundreds of candidates for House, Senate or governor this year have staked out policies related to AI or data centers on their campaign websites, injecting the issue into nearly 40 percent of races across the country, according to an analysis by The Washington Post. There are likely more races where AI has been featured in candidate messaging through speeches, debates and social media posts.

More Democrats and Republicans spotlight AI policies on their websites than mention longer-established political topics including Israel, manufacturing and racism, according to the analysis that covered 1,200 websites of candidates still in the running as of Monday.

Campaign veterans, pollsters and political analysts say they’ve rarely seen a new issue become a force so quickly in American politics. “AI has gone from something no one cared about … to it being ubiquitous,” said Kyle Kondik, an elections analyst at the University of Virginia Center for Politics.

Who’s really talking about it, though? It looks like mostly people where data centers are located or being built and politicians. It almost looks more like politicians and the Credentialed Media yapping about something that a very small number of people care about

AI is likely to be an even hotter topic in the 2028 presidential campaign. Potential contenders such as Vice President JD Vance (R) and California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) are already discussing potential AI policies.

But political experts say that neither Republicans nor Democrats have yet staked out clear positions that resonate with voters’ anxieties about the technology. “Whoever does that will reap rich political rewards,” predicted Alyssa Cass, a partner at Democratic political strategy firm Slingshot Strategies.

Opinion polls show that a significant share of Americans are “very concerned” about AI’s role in the economy, don’t want data centers near them and believe the computer hubs will raise utility bills, fear job losses from AI, and generally believe AI will do more harm than good.

But, when you’re talking about these kinds of issues, do polls with typically less than 1,500 people really represent the national mood?

The Post analysis found some differences emerging in how candidates of each major party discuss AI issues. Democrats running for House, Senate or governor this year are more than twice as likely as Republican candidates to discuss any topic related to AI or data centers on their campaign websites. (snip)

Political staffers and operatives say that left-wing Democrats are already testing broad AI policy platforms that they hope will resonate with voters in 2028. They’re hashing over policies that could insulate Americans from AI-related job losses, guard against rogue AI cyberattacks and protect children from AI dependency and abuses.

I guess they need a different topic other than TDS and Israel hate/support for Hamas, and another thing for government to control. Is it really that big, though? Or, is it an issue in search of an audience? Republican candidates are talking about it, too.