Musk met with Schumer this week for more than an hour in his Capitol Hill office, following months of tense relations between Musk and Democrats since the billionaire bought and took over Twitter in October.
The meeting, which both sides confirmed focused on AI, could be a turning point for Musk and Democrats, our colleague Alexander Bolton reported.
“That which affects safety of the public has, over time, become regulated to ensure that companies do not cut corners. AI has great power to do good and evil. Better the former,” Musk tweeted shortly after midnight Thursday.
Schumer said they also discussed Tesla’s plant in Buffalo, N.Y., and described it as “a very good meeting.”
Jim Kessler, a former Schumer aide who now serves as executive vice president for policy at Third Way, a centrist Democratic think tank, said Schumer has a long history of working with people with whom he may disagree with on a range of other issues.
“First and foremost, Schumer is a pragmatist, and if factories are going to be built in Buffalo, he’s going to support factories being built in Buffalo,” he said.
“Also, Schumer is very interested and also concerned about AI, and he’s going to seek out the smartest voices on all sides in this multifaceted debate,” he added. “Schumer talks to a wide array of people. He really does.
Senate Democrats are split about whether it’s a good move to develop a better relationship with Musk, who continues to draw scrutiny because of his controversial statements and management of Twitter.
“The man employs an awful lot of people. OK? And the bottom line is: Try to get along with everybody,” said centrist Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) when asked whether it would be wise for Democrats to bury the hatchet with Musk, who also serves as CEO of Tesla and SpaceX.
Other Democrats continue to have a negative view of Musk or at least serious reservations.
“My views on Musk at the moment are pretty negative,” said Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii). “But there are going to be things that we’re going to need to deal with regarding Section 230 and there’s a whole of array of those kinds of issues that surround social media.”
Read more in a full report at TheHill.com.
