Potential Vance Challengers Adopt AI Criticism Ahead Of ’28
Anti-tech sentiments among Republican voters may open a new path to the presidency.
The Trump administration is pushing back hard against AI doomerism. President Donald Trump calls the warnings that AI may destroy humanity a “sick conspiracy” and a “HOAX.” Vice President J.D. Vance claims these dire predictions from some tech leaders resemble a “Trojan horse” that could result in regulations that hurt the country.
Vance’s response indicates he will campaign as a tech optimist in 2028. That’s not surprising. Unlike many politicians, he thinks AI development is a good thing and the government should encourage more tech advancement, rather than restricting it.
Some of his likely opponents appear to hold a different view, with several taking an anti-tech line to boost their popularity. It’s obvious that tech is going to be a huge issue for 2028, and many Republican hopefuls think the issue may be their ticket to challenging the clear frontrunner.
Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas is widely believed to be running in ’28. So far, much of his pitch centers around his devotion to Israel and vehement hostility towards those conservatives who’d dare criticize his favorite country. He’s particularly eager to attack Tucker Carlson, a close friend of Vance. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that his criticisms of Tucker provide an opportunity to attack Vance by proxy.
But with tech, Cruz may have found a new angle to distinguish himself from the vice president. The Texas senator had a very different reaction to the recent controversy over AI’s capabilities. “We need substantially more regulation when it comes to AI,” Cruz told CNN last week. He called the warnings “scary as hell” and insisted Congress must do something. That’s quite the contrast to the administration’s dismissals.
So far, this is Cruz’s primary outburst against the tech industry. He previously advocated for tech-friendly measures, including a federal ban on state AI regulations. As chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, the Texan will play a crucial role in whatever AI legislation Congress formulates this year. The latest criticism may signal a new direction for Cruz ahead of a possible 2028 bid.
Other potential candidates have already staked out strong anti-tech stances. There are few Republicans who’ve done more to establish their credentials as a tech critic than Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. All the way back in 2021, DeSantis championed a bill to challenge social media censorship. He’s now focused on current issues, such as data centers and Flock.
Last December, DeSantis proposed an AI bill of rights for Florida that would significantly curtail the tech industry’s development within the state. “Our AI proposal will establish an Artificial Intelligence Bill of Rights to define and safeguard Floridians’ rights—including data privacy, parental controls, consumer protections, and restrictions on AI use of an individual’s name, image, or likeness without consent,” he said, announcing the proposal.
Since then, he’s declared war on data centers and Flock cameras. He signed legislation in the spring to restrict data center construction in the state. The governor argues data centers hike utility costs, place undue burdens on the power grid, and reward the wealthiest corporations at the expense of the ordinary taxpayer.
Last month, DeSantis banned Flock cameras from state highways. He claims the license plate readers could lead to the creation of a “surveillance state.” “I don’t think they intend to do general surveillance, but I will tell you, if we had all this around the country when COVID happened, you absolutely would have seen those turned on people who were outside of lockdown orders in California,” the governor said of the cameras. His ban set a standard for the rest of the state, with multiple sheriffs across Florida dropping their Flock contracts following DeSantis’s decision.
The governor once supported Flock as an effective anti-crime technology. But the public backlash has likely now convinced him it’s more politically advantageous to oppose them.
Like Cruz, DeSantis thinks the AI doomers have a point. Unlike the White House, he thinks opposition to AI restrictions is a “losing position.”
Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, arguably, is even more eager than DeSantis to be known as an AI critic. He made his name during the first Trump administration as a staunch opponent of Big Tech censorship and other dubious industry practices. He hasn’t lost any of his fervor for the cause.
While Hawley previously railed against tech censorship, he now champions measures that could encourage social media platforms to suppress more legal speech. The Missourian is at the forefront of pushing regulations to make the internet safer for children. While noble in intent, these very same measures could pressure platforms into mass censorship and end internet anonymity as we know it. But Hawley still feels it’s necessary to make this case.
“I think it’s important that [Republicans] be the party that is absolutely standing on the side of working people, and is absolutely standing on the side of the vulnerable, in this instance, of children,” he told Axios for an article entitled, “Inside Josh Hawley’s Anti-AI Strategy.” Not surprisingly, he’s a huge fan of strict AI regulations and has proposed several bills to advance this mission.
Hawley has also become one of the Senate’s foremost opponents of data centers. In February, he, along with Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal, proposed legislation that would effectively ban all new data centers from relying on pre-existing energy grids. Just this week, he called for legislation to ban data centers from opportunity zones, claiming that allowing them in these areas amounts to “corporate welfare.”
Hawley has also launched a Senate investigation into Flock and other AI-powered license plate readers. He believes the cameras may violate Americans’ constitutional rights and give far too much power to tech corporations.
Polling finds tech criticism has ample support among the public. A majority of Americans, including a majority of Republicans, believe AI could destroy humanity. Sixty-one percent of voters oppose data center construction, with Republicans being nearly evenly split on the matter. Nearly half of Americans oppose Flock cameras in their communities. A majority of Republicans are okay with Flock, but 37 percent say they oppose having cameras in their own communities.
Tech issues are going to play a major role in both parties’ primaries in 2028. Vance has made it clear that he’s going to be a tech defender as he advocates for the administration’s friendlier policies on the campaign trail. Candidates who want to distinguish themselves from Vance have a serviceable issue in AI criticism.
Whether it will be enough to offset Vance’s advantage of having Trump’s apparent support is another matter. But it’s clear that there’s plenty of support for the anti-tech position within the Republican Party. Cruz, DeSantis, Hawley, and other 2028 hopefuls aren’t stupid when they embrace the issue.
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