Rand Paul
Senator for Kentucky · Republican · United States
“foreign assistance to any Palestinian Government entity or international organization operating in the West Bank or Gaza which is funded by taxpayer dollars would be frozen unless said government entity meets some commonsense conditions.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“Yet, despite American generosity, human rights abuses in the West Bank and Gaza, committed by the Palestinian Authority, Hamas, and other groups, have been well documented over the years.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“In 2009, one of Nancy's 2-year-aged hams was invited to hang in Spain at the famous Jamon Museum, the first and only American country ham ever given that distinction. Their dry-cured ham and prosciutto have fed guests at Presidential inaugurations and earned praise from food critics across the country.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“Funding Palestinian entities that do not recognize Israel's right to exist and fund anti-American and anti-Israel activities makes no sense. At its core, this legislation establishes a principle of accountability.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“Mr. President, it should not be controversial to say that Congress should know the circumstances of the deaths of our own citizens abroad in any country.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“One U.S.-Israeli citizen, Edan Alexander, survived 584 days in captivity and upon his release vowed to return to Israel to continue his service in the IDF, saying: My story does not end with survival. It continues with service.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
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“Thank you for keeping a great Kentucky tradition alive, and I wish you many more years of success. ____________________”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“In 2009, one of Nancy's 2-year-aged hams was invited to hang in Spain at the famous Jamon Museum, the first and only American country ham ever given that distinction. Their dry-cured ham and prosciutto have fed guests at Presidential inaugurations and earned praise from food critics across the country. When you walk into the store at 208 East Main Street today it feels like stepping back in time. The shelves are packed with local sorghum, homemade chow-chow, jams, and candies. More importantly, when you call to ask a question or place an order, Nancy and her team still pick up the phone themselves. Her guiding rule has always been simple: ``We make service personal.'' Congratulations to Nancy Newsom Mahaffey and everyone at Newsom's Old Mill Store.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“Madam President, as a member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, I enjoy highlighting Kentucky businesses that represent the very best of the American entrepreneurial spirit. Today, I am proud to recognize Col. Bill Newsom's Aged Kentucky Country Ham and Newsom's Old Mill Store of Princeton, KY.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“Funding Palestinian entities that do not recognize Israel's right to exist and fund anti-American and anti-Israel activities makes no sense. At its core, this legislation establishes a principle of accountability. American taxpayers should know where their money is going, Congress should be able to oversee how it is being used, and foreign entities receiving the benefits of American assistance should be expected to meet clearly articulated standards. I therefore ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of my bill, which is at the desk. I further ask that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“foreign assistance to any Palestinian Government entity or international organization operating in the West Bank or Gaza which is funded by taxpayer dollars would be frozen unless said government entity meets some commonsense conditions. Namely, they must recognize the State of Israel, renounce terrorism and the October 7 attacks, remove individuals with terrorist ties from their security services, terminate all funding for anti-American and anti-Israel incitement, and honor previously agreed diplomatic agreements. My bill would also strengthen congressional oversight by requiring that the State Department provide to Congress a report on human rights practices in the West Bank and Gaza and examine whether the Palestinian Authority, Hamas, or any other Palestinian governing entity continues to commit human rights abuses.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“One U.S.-Israeli citizen, Edan Alexander, survived 584 days in captivity and upon his release vowed to return to Israel to continue his service in the IDF, saying: My story does not end with survival. It continues with service. Such acts of courage should inspire Congress to ensure that not one more taxpayer dime ever again goes to Palestinian governing entities that engage in human rights abuses and that directly threaten support or turn a blind eye to groups that target American citizens. My bill is simple. It requires Palestinian governing entities to meet certain commonsense conditions before they receive any additional American assistance. Under my bill, U.S.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“Yet, despite American generosity, human rights abuses in the West Bank and Gaza, committed by the Palestinian Authority, Hamas, and other groups, have been well documented over the years. In 2024, the State Department reported that Palestinian Authority officials engaged in unlawful or arbitrary killings, torture, arbitrary arrests, severe restrictions on the freedom of expression, persecution of journalists, and the recruitment or use of children in armed conflict and much more. Of course, we can never forget the brutal attack perpetrated by Hamas on October 7, 2023, which killed some 1,200 innocent men, women, and children--among them, 46 citizens. A further 254 people were taken hostage, including 12 Americans, who endured unimaginable conditions.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“Mr. President, it should not be controversial to say that Congress should know the circumstances of the deaths of our own citizens abroad in any country. It should be equally uncontroversial to say, in the spirit of transparency and oversight, that Congress must also be aware of human rights abuses anywhere abroad where billions of taxpayer dollars have been sent over the years. Since 1993, the United States has provided $7.8 billion in bilateral assistance to the West Bank and Gaza. As Washington throws money every which way, Congress must at least ensure that those taxpayer dollars advance our core interests, let alone not reward those who seek to harm us or our allies.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“I ask for the yeas and nays.”
Senate28 September 2026Source ↗
“My amendment would exempt the NCAA from antitrust laws and return college sports to the voluntary interactions between the athletes and the association. I recommend a ``yes'' vote and ask for the yeas and nays.”
Senate28 September 2026Source ↗
“College sports is a mess--that much we can agree on--but I doubt the Congress that oversees the post office is the right body to oversee college sports. It should surprise no one that Congress created this problem when they created the nonsensical antitrust laws--antitrust laws that the government argues create monopolies when prices are too low, when competition is too intense, and when innovation is too prevalent. Nonsensical. No one knows whether this bill is Congress' first foray into college sports or its last. What is clear, though, is that the bill before us forbids the NCAA from ever returning to a traditional understanding of amateur athletics. This bill makes it illegal to not pay--not pay--players, so those that are nostalgic for an era when our unpaid amateur hockey team beat the Russians will forever be disappointed.”
Senate28 September 2026Source ↗
“I call up my amendment No. 6758 and ask that it be reported by number.”
Senate28 September 2026Source ↗
“Diplomacy creates a space to refer to someone as ``President'' even though the world knows they were elected by a small group in a single-party state. The leadership between the United States and China is the most consequential of the 21st century. As such, we should strive to at least have decent working relations with one another. That is why I fully support President Trump's overture to meet with President Xi. We should not advance symbolic condemnation that unnecessarily undermines United States-China diplomacy with no tangible benefit to United States' interests. Instead, we should encourage more United States-China dialogue given the consequences of a hostile relationship, not symbolically poke them in the eye before the first state visit in 10 years. Diplomacy is fast becoming a lost art.”
Senate24 September 2026Source ↗
“My concern is far greater that America will succumb to socialism by choice than by foreign invasion. The question is, Will this next generation follow the path of previous generations? Will today's youth emerge from their parents' basements and begin to earn a living, discover that their success depends on their merit and hard work or will they succumb to the allure of something for nothing? In ``The Case Against Socialism,'' I pull no punches about the tyranny and violence of Mao and the panopticon of China's surveillance state today. But I draw a distinction between articulating the horrors of Chinese authoritarianism and Senate resolutions intended to embarrass Chinese leaders who are visiting our country. The art of diplomacy is the art of pulling punches, avoiding insult, attempting to find common ground.”
Senate24 September 2026Source ↗
“Mr. President, reserving the right to object, as the author of ``The Case Against Socialism,'' I take a backseat to no one in my opposition of socialism, communism, or any other form of collectivism. In ``The Case Against Socialism,'' I wrote: This is the story of an evil well documented and yet still somehow enticing, even in America. This is the story of socialism in all its drab and dreary machinelike destruction of individual thought, creativity, and ambition. This is the story of socialism in all its violence, bloodshed, and tyranny. It is a cautionary tale of how America has so far eluded the siren call of something for nothing, of an equality determined and enforced by government--but also of how close we still are to succumbing to socialism.”
Senate24 September 2026Source ↗
“Congratulations to the entire team at Dueling Barrels Brewery & Distillery. I wish them continued success, and I am proud to recognize this great Kentucky business. ____________________”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“Madam President, as a member of the Senate Small Business Committee, I seek to recognize outstanding Kentucky small businesses that exemplify the American entrepreneurial spirit. Therefore, it is my privilege to recognize Dueling Barrels Brewery & Distillery of Pikeville, KY, as a Senate Small Business of the Week. Located in the heart of downtown Pikeville, Dueling Barrels Brewery & Distillery was founded through the vision of the late Dr. Pearse Lyons and his wife Deirdre Lyons.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“The business has been recognized as ``Best in the Mountains'' by the Floyd County Chronicle, reflecting the reputation Aaron and his team have built among the people they serve. Small businesses like Copperhead Gun & Range demonstrate the important role locally owned businesses play in their communities. They create jobs, develop expertise, invest locally, and, when their neighbors are in need, answer the call. Congratulations to Aaron Scott and the entire team at Copperhead Gun & Range. I wish them continued success. ____________________”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“Madam President, as a member of the Senate Small Business Committee, I seek to recognize outstanding Kentucky small businesses that exemplify the American entrepreneurial spirit. It is my privilege to recognize Copperhead Gun & Range of Prestonsburg, KY, as a Senate Small Business of the Week.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“Madam President, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of Mathias ``Matth'' Toebben, a respected northern Kentucky developer, businessman, community leader, and friend to countless people throughout the Commonwealth of Kentucky who passed away on August 3, 2026. His passing marks the end of a long and distinguished life dedicated to his family, his work, and the continued growth and prosperity of the community he called home.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“Later, he told his wife, ``I am ready to go.'' Jim passed away the following morning, surrounded by his wife, children, siblings, and loved ones. The story of Jim Brueggemann is ultimately a story of faith, family, perseverance, and service. He leaves behind a large and loving family whose lives were shaped by his example and whose memories of him will endure for generations. Northern Kentucky has lost a respected member of its community, but Jim's greatest legacy will not be measured by a business or an accomplishment. It will be measured by the family he loved, the values he lived, the faith he cherished, and the example he provided to those who had the privilege of knowing him. I extend my deepest condolences to Maria Brueggemann, Jim's children and grandchildren, his brothers and sister, and all of his extended family and friends.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“Madam President, I rise today to honor the life and memory of James Edward Joseph Brueggemann, a devoted husband, father, grandfather, businessman, and man of deep faith who passed away on August 15, 2026. James, known affectionately as ``Jim'' to those who knew him, was born on February 22, 1960, to Bernard and Rita Brueggemann. He was the third of their six children. Jim was raised in a family that instilled in him a strong Catholic faith, a profound sense of responsibility, and an enduring commitment to family and hard work.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“I think it adds mandates, and it ultimately actually might increase the price of healthcare as we add one more cost to the insurance companies and those who have to provide healthcare. So, therefore, I object.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“There are websites that will help you out if you don't have insurance. The only people who really benefit by some of these price transparencies would be people without insurance, but there are some. For example, there is a website you can go to where you can get an MRI on Sundays. If you live in a big city and you will drive an hour outside the big city and you want to get your MRI and you will spend an hour driving and do it on Sunday afternoon at 3 o'clock when the volume is really low, you can get a discount. There are websites that will direct you there. But until Congress is serious about reducing the Federal Government's role in healthcare, reducing the subsidization, allowing people to join co-ops--that is when we will actually get the price down. But this bill actually won't do it.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“Now, understandably, the insurance companies are opposed to this. We haven't been able to get it out of committee. And one of the reasons is the Democrats largely oppose this because they say: Well, we are kind of for it, but we have to mandate what the insurance is. This has been the thing going all the way back to ObamaCare. When you mandate what is in insurance, you elevate the cost of it. So if we let the market take care of it, let people come together in co-ops to buy insurance, you could drive prices down. This window dressing won't work because the prices are already fixed, and knowing what the prices are won't bring the prices down. Employers already do some of this negotiation for you. There are examples. Lowe's Home Improvement has negotiated a $325 MRI at facilities in the highest tier.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“The way they would work is this: Instead of an accountant and three employees trying to get insurance for four people, you join a buying group--this would be like Amazon, Sam's Club, Costco--and then a large group would negotiate, not for individual policies but for a group policy. It takes a change in our labor laws. We change the ERISA law to let you do this. Then you would be able to dial up Amazon, get on Amazon, and if Amazon had 40 million members that wanted to buy insurance, 1 person at Amazon would call up probably the CEO of UnitedHealthcare and negotiate a rate. So what we would do is grant you leverage. It doesn't cost anything, doesn't mandate anything, and lets you do what you want. It gets rid of aspects of our labor law that prevent this. It would let anybody join a buying group or co-op to buy their insurance.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“I would argue that the mandated transparency regulations will actually have limited effect even in the best-case scenario because over 95 percent of the healthcare market involves insurance or government middlemen already. Healthcare prices have continued to rise 5 to 10 percent annually because of the root cause of the problem: insurance and third-party payments. We also don't seem to have enough leverage as patients to get a better price. There is something that we could do, and it is a bill that I have had out there for years and that I would be happy to get behind a unanimous consent effort, and this is something called association healthcare or health association.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“It is not lack of transparency; it is that prices are fixed. Now, there is a part of the market that actually does work. It is called elective, which means not covered by insurance. It also works to a certain extent if you are willing to pay at that time. I go to a local HCA hospital on occasion, and when I pay, they say: If you will pay now, we will give you a 25-percent discount by immediate pay. So there are parts of the system that do work. But the opaqueness is because you are not paying. The opaqueness is because a third party is paying, and that really is where the system is broken. So there is almost nobody choosing any healthcare based on price other than the 5 percent or those who are in the elective market, the 5 percent who don't have insurance or in the elective market.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“So what we will do is ask to bring my amendment down for a vote, and it is going to be rejected. And that is disappointing that we are going to do this whole thing where we take over college sports and any dissent will be muted and there will be no attempts to alter the bill. The bill has been written in private, but there will be no ability for anyone to amend this bill. That is a disappointment. So what I will be asking for is permission to have a vote on my amendment. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to call up my amendment No. 6758.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“This would ensure conferences, colleges, and athletes are free to negotiate and enter into agreements that benefit everyone without the heavy hand of government dictating what parties could offer or accept. It would also prevent Congress from imposing rules governing such minutiae as eligibility for transfer students as a threshold for reporting name, image, and likeness income. I love college sports as much as anyone, which is why I think the best way we could protect college sports is to stop sticking our nose in where it doesn't belong. Now, we have the bill before us, and you would think, in a country like ours that prizes democracy in a republic, we would have debate, we would be able to present my amendment, and it would either pass or fail on its merits.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“A legislative Commission--this is where we will get to the commissioner of college sports--will recommend new rule changes to Congress in the future. It seems that we already have an institution that does this; it is called the NCAA. Congress should not mire itself in another endless cycle of solving problems it caused. We should address the root cause, which is the antitrust law, that got us here. I have several bills to get rid of some of these old antitrust laws that I think actually favor Big Business over Small Business. One of the antitrust laws says that if you buy more in bulk from someone--so if you are a hardware store and you buy 5 hammers or you are Walmart that buys 5,000 hammers, there is a law that says you are not allowed to give discounts to big suppliers. Well, that is ridiculous. It goes against all economics.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“There was always something more admirable--not that money is bad, not that the NFL and NBA are bad. Look, our basketball players go after a year anyway. They are playing 1 year and going to the NBA. Some of them are going directly from high school, and that is their business. There is always this avenue to make money, but now what we have done with this bill is we have micromanaged this, and in the bill, it actually forbids anybody from preventing amateurs from being paid. You will no longer--it was probably a lost dream anyway, but this bill prevents the NCAA from ever going back to having true amateur sports where they aren't paid. The bill would also set up a Commission on the future of college athletics.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“It limits the ability of certain employees to freely leave one school and accept a job at another. It decides how students may go about licensing their name, image, and likeness. It even decides when the transfer students are eligible to play. The bill actually forbids a return to the historic model of amateur sports where athletes are not paid. I am old enough to remember when amateur sports was lauded. You remember when we beat the Russians. We beat them with amateurs. It was commendable. They put all their professionals out there, and we beat them with amateurs. But people knew what it was to be amateurs. People who remember Bobby Jones remember and respect that Bobby Jones didn't take money. There was something admirable about someone so pure that they didn't.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“Government has shirked its real duties--which are paramount, which are of great national importance--to focus on something it knows nothing about. And mark my words, this won't be the end of it. Sports has commissioners--a commissioner of baseball. Who is going to be the commissioner of college sports? Will we be back here in another year with people lobbying us to tweak the eligibility rules, tweak the transfer rules? As important as college sports are to students and institutions, they aren't something Congress should micromanage. Athletes and institutions should be free to make choices about who they work for, who they play for, and what rules they should be subject to. This bill manages to interfere with college athletics at nearly every level.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“In fact, to this day, antitrust laws protect Big Business against Small Business. If five doctors get together and they say ``Well, we want to get our annual fee or our exam fee to be $100'' and they are in separate practices that come together, the government will sue them for antitrust even though they are trying to use their leverage to negotiate a higher price with a billion-dollar company. The insurance companies are protected from doctors organizing or nurses organizing or hospitals organizing even though they are the big player. The big bully is the insurance company, but they are protected by antitrust and the small business people are punished. This is the history of antitrust law. In 2015, the court finally decided that the NCAA could not require students to maintain their amateur status.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“This is a real tragedy, and the reason I bring it up today is not because college sports is so messed up by the government. When you let antitrust law pervade private associations, you get rid of all of the rules that people voluntarily accept. It is no different than your homeowners association. It has all these rules. You voluntarily accept them if you want to be part of that particular neighborhood. It is the same way with the NCAA. But they can't make the rules anymore because the courts said: You are a monopoly. You are no longer allowed to. All of the problems in college sports can be laid at the foot of antitrust law. You can say it is the courts, but it is really Congress. Congress passed these ridiculous laws, and for 150 years, they have been used in a ridiculous way.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“You get something, but in order to get it, you accepted, voluntarily, the rules--that is, until the Court came in, messed everything up, and neutered the NCAA. Rather than recognizing that there may have been an underlying reason for the restrictions, the Court threw out the restrictions and began the slippery slope we are on today. That case in 1984 established college athletics as a commercial enterprise, but it wasn't until 2015 that the courts really sank their fangs into college athletics. In 2015, the court decided that the NCAA could not require students to maintain their amateur status by refusing payments for the use of their name, image, and likeness. The court decided that eligibility rules for a private association are best decided by the government, not the members of the association.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“These are the absurdities of antitrust laws. This is the antitrust law that ended up destroying college sports. When you see the mess that is college sports, don't think it just happened and now government has to come in and fix it. Government created the problem. Government took antitrust law, used it against NCAA, neutered them, and said: You can no longer make your rules. So when it is the government's fault, maybe we should get rid of the government problem, not add more government to try to solve the problems. Antitrust laws granted the courts the ability to intrude on private contracts and dictate how people should run their businesses or their associations, like the NCAA, and courts have grown increasingly comfortable using that power, increasing the scope of antitrust law with each case.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“One of the most ridiculous examples of antitrust as a weapon of government came in 1967. In Utah Pie Company v. Continental Baking Company, the Court determined that a bakery violated antitrust laws by selling its pies too cheaply. Now, you would be forgiven for being confused if you thought monopolies were where someone controlled the market and raised your price. The government sued Utah Pie Company for selling its pies too cheaply. Not long after that, in 1969, the government sued IBM for dominating the computer market by innovating too quickly. Now, I thought monopolies were going to prevent competition. There would be no innovation. They would block new innovation because they didn't want someone to get into their territory. Instead, they accused IBM of innovating too frequently.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“My amendment would put the trust in the schools, the students, the coaches, and the conferences to run their own sports. You see, the whole problem originated because the government, through the courts, took the power away from the NCAA. My amendment accomplishes this goal simply by granting an antitrust exemption so that the NCAA, the conferences, the college students, and the schools can make their own deals without unelected judges or politicians micromanaging every detail of compensation and eligibility. Jason Russell, a journalist with Reason magazine, perhaps summed up this bill's Federal takeover of college sports best when he wrote: The backers of the bill believe politicians, not the NCAA, should decide how many transfers are allowed.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“Yet, with gas at over $4 a gallon, a persistent war with Iran, $40 trillion in debt, the Senate has decided that the most urgent thing now is to dictate how college sports are run from Washington. It came to this decision, of course, after acknowledging that government caused the very problems this bill purports to fix. This is the exact scenario the great Harry Brown described when he said: Government--you know, they know how to break your legs and then hand you a crutch and say, see, if it weren't for the government, you wouldn't be able to walk. I come to the floor today to offer an amendment that would avoid the Federal takeover of college sports. Unlike the underlying bill, my amendment rejects the idea that politicians should run college sports.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“Mr. President, the people who oversee the post office now want to run college sports. What could go wrong? The U.S. Congress has been called upon during one of the more important times in our history to make difficult decisions about the future of our country. We have navigated wars, economic downturns, and natural disasters. These are the kinds of nationwide issues the Federal Government should address. The Founders never intended for the Federal Government, though, to usurp the authority of your local school board or your homeowners association. I don't think it ever occurred to them that Congress would one day be in charge of dictating the rules for college sports.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.”
Senate23 September 2026Source ↗
“What began as a family homestead grew over time to encompass thousands of acres and became home to the Todd Hybrid Seed Company, which developed and distributed seed corn to farmers across the country and was an important part of the agricultural economy of Carroll County for decades. This year, the State of Indiana recognized that remarkable legacy by presenting the Todd Family Farm with the Hoosier Homestead Sesquicentennial Award. The award honors farms that have remained in the same family for 150 years, a distinction that speaks not only to longevity but to the commitment required of generation after generation to preserve and protect a family farm. The Todd family's legacy also extends to my home State of Kentucky.”
Senate17 September 2026Source ↗
“Madam President, I rise today to recognize the Todd family of Todd Family Farm in Carroll County, IN, and an extraordinary milestone in their family's history: 150 consecutive years of stewardship of their farm. Since 1876, generations of the Todd family have cared for the same land, building a legacy rooted in agriculture, hard work, faith, family, and service.”
Senate17 September 2026Source ↗
“Is there objection to the modification? I recognize the Senator from Louisiana.”
Senate16 September 2026Source ↗
“My amendment would require the appointment of three Republicans and three Democrats to study how best to ensure the safety of AI and would require them to report back the solutions to the Commerce Committee, where they would be debated by Republicans and Democrats to make sure we don't do anything rash, to make sure we don't destroy something before it has a chance to even blossom. Once we have studied this issue, we will be better positioned to make best choices regarding the future of this important technology. Therefore, I ask that the consent be modified so that my amendment, which is at the desk, be agreed to; further, I ask unanimous consent that the bill, as amended, be considered read a third time and passed and the motion to be reconsidered be considered made and laid upon the table.”
Senate16 September 2026Source ↗
“We have made this mistake many a time in open-ended mandates, scare tactics, must-act, and we don't think before we act. And then all of a sudden, a year later, we are like: Oh, my goodness. We just ruined the entire economy--an AI-built economy--because we didn't even have a committee hearing about this. The stifling effects of bureaucracy will be supercharged against AI. Empowering bureaucrats without any meaningful constraint on their power means that the promise of America leading the way--which we are leading the way toward better medical treatment, improved food production, a wealthier society, to name just a few potential benefits--will be under constant bureaucratic threat. The risk of giving bureaucrats unfettered control over AI outweighs the benefits of imposing an immediate ill-thought mandate on AI companies.”
Senate16 September 2026Source ↗
“We should not impose new regulations on AI throughout our whole economy without studying, without debate, without a single committee hearing. We are going to just put this blanket regulation on the whole economy with no discussion, in one fell swoop, on 1 day, by unanimous consent? As currently drafted, it is not entirely clear what this bill would require. It demands that AI companies implement a way for humans to shut down an AI system, but it doesn't define how it should do that or what the consequences of failing to do that might be. It, instead, gives an open-ended directive and allows bureaucrats to fill in the gaps. Sound dangerous? Sounds dangerous to me. The real danger of this legislation is we do not know what bureaucrats will do once empowered by Congress.”
Senate16 September 2026Source ↗
“Think, for example, that your search engine you already use today is AI. Are they going to have to redesign all the search engines immediately, if this passes, and put kill switches in your search engine? AI is going to be throughout the economy in so many facets. Are doctors going to have to build a kill switch into their drug prescription analysis? I mean, all of the things that are using AI already, you are going to be into every business possible in the world with this vague sort of notion that the government is coming. Here is the government. We are not even sure what the government is going to do, but it is very vague and it is very big and it is very powerful and it is going to affect every aspect where AI is involved. I don't oppose the spirit of this bill, but I do ask that we make sure that we have all the information.”
Senate16 September 2026Source ↗