Republican control of both the White House and Congress means the next two years could mark a sea change in tech policy with much more being done than has been the norm in recent years or, really, recent decades.
That being said, nothing is ever easy in the Capitol, and nothing is ever guaranteed in President Donald Trump’s Washington. In particular, Speaker Mike Johnson’s razor-thin majority means House leadership can’t push every priority through.
Here’s where we expect the Hill to make headway on tech policy and where getting something done remains a long shot.
Easy: The TAKE IT DOWN Act was Sen. Ted Cruz’s (R-Texas) bipartisan bill to tackle nonconsensual explicit images, both those that are real and those created via artificial intelligence. We were first to tell you Cruz, now Senate Commerce Committee chair, reintroduced that bill last week.
The measure would criminalize the spreading of such images and force online platforms to create a way to get the pictures and videos taken down. The bill cleared the Senate handily late last year, but it didn’t cross the finish line. It was included in the initial version of the year-end continuing resolution but fell out when congressional Republicans had to slim down the measure under pressure from Trump and Elon Musk.
It’s still a bipartisan proposal that leadership has vetted (despite some concerns from civil liberties groups). Cruz told us it’s a priority.
More measures on similar issues — the DEFIANCE Act and the SHIELD Act — made it pretty far last year as well.
Doable: Digital protection for young users took up a lot of the oxygen last Congress. Johnson and House GOP leadership had concerns about how the Kids Online Safety Act, which would regulate social media design, would affect free speech.
Musk helped the Senate sponsors develop a new version, and Donald Trump Jr. got behind the idea. KOSA has clear political oomph, enough so that Johnson had to say he wants to get to “yes” this year.
Still, free speech concerns can be hard to overcome, and Republican leaders had other worries.
Renewing the Federal Communications Commission’s authority to auction electromagnetic spectrum is a priority for House Energy and Commerce Chair Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.) and Cruz. This proposal is being pushed as part of the filibuster-proof reconciliation bill, or bills, that Congress wants to move quickly to enact key parts of Trump’s agenda. It would raise money for the government, which would help offset the cost of pricier policies.
But there will be challenges from Republicans who are closely aligned with the Pentagon. The Defense Department has control of a lot of mid-band spectrum, which carriers say is the sweet spot to boost 5G service, and it doesn’t want to give it away easily.
Sens. Mike Rounds (S.D.) and Deb Fischer (Neb.) will be key Republicans to watch during these negotiations as they have historically aligned with the DoD’s position.
Difficult: Comprehensive online privacy — for all users — has been eluding lawmakers for years, arguably even decades. Cruz told us he has no interest in the draft that circulated last Congress.
Starting from scratch will take time and political will — both of which are not in abundance right now.
Tougher than a burnt steak: Republicans want nothing to do with comprehensive AI safety rules right now.