Use AI to discredit political opponents? Republicans see no problem with this. As AP News reports, the National Republican Senate Committee (NRSC) recently posted a video online on Friday, October 17, of Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senate Minority Leader, paying the price.
In this AI-generated video, we can see the Democrat detailing the political consequences of the US shutdown that is paralyzing the country… and rejoicing at the situation.
“These are Chuck Schumer’s own words.”
“Every day is better for us,” he is heard saying, with a smile on his face, in the thirty-second video generated by AI. “Really Chuck? What do you mean?” says a voice-over.
Excerpts from the reports then appear. For example, we may see military families lining up at food banks or White House officials expressing outrage over the effects of the shutdown. “Schumer believes that playing with Americans’ livelihoods is just a game,” says the voice-over, while ensuring that Democrats “love” this political impasse.
In reality, his speech was hijacked by the NRSC. In fact, the phrase “every day is better for us” was uttered, but not in front of a camera, but in an article in Punchbowl News, an American newspaper. Finally and above all, it is taken out of context.
In the original interview, he clarified that his party had anticipated the closure. “We knew that health care would be at the center of concerns on September 30 and we had prepared for it… Their theory was: threaten us, deceive us and we will submit in a day or two,” he says, while ensuring that his side will not give in to Republican threats. He also explains that each day that passes strengthens the Democratic position and its relevance: “But each day we advance further, as the message takes root more and more deeply.”
Donald Trump, the (bad) example
Republicans seem to accept this choice. “AI-generated content is already here,” NRSC spokesperson Joanna Rodríguez told AP. “It will be used in campaigns. It will comply with legal and ethical standards.” “These are Chuck Schumer’s own words,” he continued. “Video is a way for voters to see and hear for themselves.”
However, 28 American states have adopted laws prohibiting deepfakes of political figures, particularly in the electoral context. However, most do not ban them outright if they are clearly disclosed. For its part, X has not, for the moment, taken any action against this publication.
This is not the first time someone in the Republican Party has shared a deepfake or AI-generated video. Party leader Donald Trump regularly posts countless of them on Truth Social, even if it means spreading disinformation.
The last example was yesterday. On October 19, the President of the United States saw fit to react to the “No Kings” demonstrations, these peaceful gatherings against “the authoritarian power grabs” of the Trump administration, with a video generated by AI.
In the images you can see him aboard a “King Trump” fighter plane. The president, wearing a crown, divides the sky in the film’s cult soundtrackTop gun. He then enjoys throwing what appears to be fecal matter on the protesters.
At the end of September, the Republican published a fake AI-generated video. Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic House minority leader, can be seen making crude and fabricated comments about immigration and voter fraud. In July, he shared a fake video of Barack Obama’s arrest.
“AI does not fundamentally change the strategies of the movement linked to Donald Trump, but it has a steroid effect. Donald Trump has often relied on his MAGA back shop, trolls and network activists who create memes,” Romain Fargier observed last July for Tech&Co. But AI has changed the game. “It allows the creation of quality content for industrial production. It has promoted the phenomenon of memification of politics, especially in the United States.”
A strategy that galvanizes his support and does not encourage his party to adopt responsible use of AI, but quite the opposite.
Source: BFM TV
