00:00I'll recognize Ms. Crockett for five minutes.
00:02Thank you so much, Madam Chair.
00:04You know, it's interesting because I don't know what all has taken place thus far in this hearing.
00:11But I do recall when I left, we were talking about Elon.
00:15And so I want to make sure that we don't forget him.
00:18I know that some people want us to forget Elon and act like he never existed, but we're not going to do that.
00:23But we are talking about AI today, and I can tell you what real people in my district care about.
00:32I had a few town halls, and I talked to some seniors, and they were concerned about their data and their information and how it was being used.
00:40And they wanted me to answer questions that I just didn't have the answers to about what has Elon done with their tax information,
00:48their Social Security information, their health information, banking information, information about their credit histories,
00:53and instead of demanding answers, Republicans just blocked our motion to subpoena him to testify before this committee.
01:00And I'd ask at this point for unanimous consent to enter into the record a picture of who all was in the room when we took the vote.
01:08Madam Chair?
01:09No objection.
01:11As well as since our clerk was ready and she knew who was in the room, the actual record of who was in the room at that time.
01:21No objection.
01:21Thank you so much.
01:23Five months into the 119th Congress, and no one from the administration or DOGE has appeared before this committee to explain why they're invading the privacy of Americans.
01:36And the irony of it all is during a 2023 hearing, I remember Chairman Comer stating that, quote,
01:42we've witnessed big tech autocrats wield their unchecked power to promote their preferred political opinions.
01:48And now he and committee Republicans are here helping the world's richest man to do just that.
01:54They're letting him spy on companies competing for government grants, but worse, they're letting him spy on you, the American people.
02:01Look, we can all agree that incorporating emerging technologies like artificial intelligence into government operations can be effective.
02:07However, these technologies shouldn't be used to weaponize the government against the public.
02:13So I'm going to ask Mr. Schneider really quickly.
02:15Is it true that when it comes to any technologies, AI or otherwise, that they can be a bull-edged sword?
02:23I think of technology as power.
02:26And the more that technology enhances your power.
02:28And whether your power is for good or for bad depends on you, depends on how you're perceived.
02:35So yes, technology has affordances.
02:38We know that modern technologies have kind of built for surveillance, make surveillance easy.
02:43I mean, this is the most complex effective surveillance device we've ever invented.
02:47And we all willingly put it in our pockets every morning.
02:50So yes, technology is used for both good and evil.
02:53But think of the people behind it as the wielders.
02:57Yes, I absolutely agree, and I appreciate your answer.
03:01That's my concern.
03:03My concern is that these technologies will be used to weaponize the government against the public
03:08because everything that we have seen out of this particular administration has been nothing short but weaponization.
03:15So let's talk about some of the things that this administration is doing.
03:17They've announced they're going to use AI to scan the social media accounts of students who disagree with their policies.
03:23They've threatened nonprofits and universities that are threatening their tax-exempt status.
03:30They've threatened journalists for reporting stories that are critical of the president.
03:34They are literally in court arguing to end birthright citizenship.
03:38And a lot of y'all think only immigrants are going to be affected by this.
03:43But this administration has already deported American citizens.
03:47In fact, in an interview with Time magazine, Trump said, quote,
03:50I would love to do that.
03:52We're looking into it.
03:55Madam Chair, I'd ask unanimous consent to enter into the record.
03:58An article published by ABC News titled, quote,
04:02Trump wants to send U.S. citizens to foreign prisons.
04:05Legal experts say that.
04:06No objection.
04:08It won't be long before more Americans are targets of this administration.
04:12This administration has refused to follow the law, and the Republicans are failing to do actual oversight.
04:16We don't know what they're going to do with their health records and Social Security information.
04:21In fact, we don't know what they're doing.
04:22I don't think anybody does.
04:24Except we know that they're breaking the law.
04:26And it is frustrating to me because I am somebody that actually believes in science.
04:31I believe that we should be investing in our young people.
04:34I believe that we should not be taking research dollars away.
04:37I believe that we should be trying to come up with new technologies and that we should be leading the world.
04:42But unfortunately, I can't trust these guys to do good things because, as it's already been said by Mr. Schneider,
04:49it is about who it is that is on the side that is asking for this to be done.
04:54And frankly, this feels like some bad movie that we are all in and that the villains are doing bad.
