Georgia Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff criticized President Donald Trump for being "compromised" on artificial intelligence (AI) due to financial ties with AI companies through his family's venture firm, 1789 Capital. During an interview on MS NOW’s The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell, Ossoff also called Trump “dangerously corrupt and incompetent” and urged voters to support Democrats in the upcoming midterms to counteract what he sees as a lack of leadership from the president regarding AI regulation and national security risks associated with it.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-16,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it -0.65, but all 3 of its quote(s) are attributed speech - words the article quotes from someone, not the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
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Leaning score withheld for article 10882: attributed speech only · logged 2026-09-16
Georgia Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff has accused President Donald Trump of being “compromised” on AI after the latter’s comments opposing regulation of the emerging technology provoked uproar.
asserted
comments → accuse → uproar
Trump has lashed at critics of artificial intelligence several times in recent days, rubbishing concerns about its potential for harm and arguing that any slowdown in its development would hand China a competitive edge.
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slowdown → lash → edge
He then launched into a series of ranting posts on Truth Social Monday – in which he alleged a “SICK conspiracy” was trying to rein in the sector, overlooking comments by industry leaders Sam Altman, Elon Musk and Dario Amodei – which sparked calls for his removal from office under the 25th Amendment.
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which → launch → Amendment
Responding on MS NOW’s The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell Monday evening, the senator – who is seen as one of his party’s rising stars and has been tipped for a 2028 presidential run – was asked how he believed an “active, alert” president should respond to the existential challenges posed by AI.
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president → respond → AI
“This is a moment that calls for wise and capable leadership,” Ossoff responded, agreeing with O’Donnell’s earlier comparison between AI and the proliferation of nuclear weapons in the mid-20th century.
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Ossoff → call → century
“It’s not by skill, but rather by luck, that for the last 80 years we’ve avoided a nuclear exchange between two powers and our wisdom has to catch up with our technical capacity,” the senator said.
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senator → ’ → capacity
He called for Big Tech bosses to testify “immediately” before Congress, allow inspectors to visit their laboratories and for the U.S. to fortify itself against bioterrorism, which he called “one of the most significant potential threats associated with this technology.”
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he → call → technology
Pivoting to the president, he said: “Donald Trump basically says we’re gonna sit on our hands and hope for the best.
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we → pivot → best
And, remember, he’s conflicted.
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he → remember → ?
“1789 Capital – the venture firm that Don Jr is a partner in – they’ve invested heavily in AI labs, they’ve invested heavily in data centres, so the First Family has a financial stake in this industry and, as a result, the president of the United States is compromised.”
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president → invest → States
The Independent has reached out to the Trump Organization for comment.
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Independent → reach → comment
Later in the interview, Ossoff called the president “a dangerously corrupt and incompetent man” and reminded voters to do their “patriotic duty” in November’s midterms and help Democrats win their races “decisively.”
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Democrats → call → races
He was also asked about Trump’s eldest son, the aforementioned Don Jr, recently marrying Florida socialite Bettina Anderson in the Bahamas in a ceremony partially paid for by Russian oligarch Umar Kremlev, who has ties to President Vladimir Putin.
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who → ask → Putin
“We are witnessing people drunk with power, who are utterly reckless, utterly corrupt, and obviously believe that they live with impunity,” Ossoff said.
“They believe they’re untouchable.
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they → witness → impunity
They believe they’re invincible.
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they → believe → ?
Let’s prove them wrong…
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them → let → ?
Let’s teach Donald Trump a lesson he’ll never forget.”
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he → let → lesson
Ossoff recently made headlines by mocking the president over his close relationship with his executive assistant Natalie Harp at a rally in Atlanta.
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Ossoff → make → Atlanta
“He doesn’t want to do his job,” the senator said, in comments that quickly went viral.
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that → want → comments
“He wants to build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on their apparently defenseless flying palace gifted by the Emir of Qatar.”
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He → want → Qatar
The reference to Harp drew a furious response from both the president – who angrily likened Ossoff to the 1980s children’s entertainer Pee-wee Herman – and the White House, which inadvertently prolonged the controversy by aggressively going on the attack and demanding the Democrat apologize.
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Democrat → draw → attack
The senator was unmoved by the backlash, preferring to stand back and marvel at the “meltdown” he had inspired.
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he → prefer → meltdown
The Aporia
