Blanche Dismisses AI Alarm as Election Ploy, Deflects Questions on Trump Jr. Wedding Gift
Attorney General Todd Blanche downplayed AI risks as a pre-midterm political tactic and said he has no information on a Russian oligarch's funding of Donald Trump Jr.'s wedding.
Attorney General Todd Blanche used a rare briefing in the White House Rose Garden on Tuesday to push back on mounting warnings about artificial intelligence, framing the sudden concern as a political manoeuvre timed to the midterm elections.
Blanche said AI had "conveniently" become a flashpoint in the week of the briefing, and pointed to what he described as a rush by Democratic senators to address the issue after long silence. He said the timing suggested an effort to influence the November midterms, adding that such calculations should not drive decisions on the technology.
He rejected any suggestion that the Justice Department should take on a regulatory role. "We're prosecutors, not regulators," he said, arguing that existing criminal law is sufficient to pursue cases involving AI and that the department has already charged individuals in such matters. He also stressed that the United States cannot afford to lose the AI race to China.
The comments were notable because the concerns have been raised by leading AI companies, including Anthropic, OpenAI and Google DeepMind, which would stand to gain from wider adoption of the technology.
On a separate matter, Blanche was asked about reports that Donald Trump Jr.'s wedding celebrations were partly funded by Umar Kremlev, a Russian businessman described as close to President Vladimir Putin. He said he had no firsthand knowledge of the matter and could not confirm the nature of Kremlev's ties to Putin.
Blanche said the president and members of his family have already addressed the issue, and that Trump Jr. has described Kremlev as a close friend who gave a gift during his wedding weekend. He declined to say whether any investigation was under way, asking what specifically he was being asked to investigate.
The wedding funding was confirmed on Monday by Trump Jr.'s new wife, Bettina, who said the May celebration was "generously" supported by Kremlev, whom she called a dear friend.