Why Congress Refuses To Regulate AI And Crypto

The Money Trail Explains Everything

There’s a question that keeps coming up in policy circles, in tech journalism, and increasingly at kitchen tables across America: Why, with artificial intelligence reshaping entire industries and crypto markets swinging wildly enough to wipe out retirement savings overnight, has Congress done so little to regulate any of it?

The answer, frustratingly, is not complicated. It’s the same answer it’s almost always been in Washington. Follow the money.

The Flood of Tech Money Into 2026 Campaigns

The Republican Party’s fealty to Crypto corporations is tenured and steady. They have been loudly defending Crypto and the industry’s clear corruption for years. They are comfortable with the corruption because they’re funded by this industry.

For years, the Democratic Party positioned itself as the natural home of consumer protection, financial oversight, and accountability for powerful industries. But that positioning has become increasingly difficult to square with the reality of where congressional Democrats are getting their campaign cash.

Let’s be specific about both sides of the aisle and their crypto engagement:

Congressman French Hill, Chair of the Financial Services Committee: Secured hundreds of thousands of dollars from crypto-linked PACs as a key leader on financial services and digital asset framework policies. [1]

Senator Mike Rounds: Received targeted campaign spending from crypto super PAC networks supporting incumbent allies. [1]

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) co-authored the Lummis-Gillibrand Responsible Financial Innovation Act — a bill widely criticized by consumer advocates as being far too friendly to the crypto industry. Gillibrand received over $300,000 in crypto-related contributions during her campaign cycles, drawing sharp criticism from progressive watchdog groups who argued the bill essentially handed the industry the light-touch regulatory framework it had been lobbying for.

Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) has received substantial contributions from major technology PACs and Silicon Valley donors throughout his Senate tenure, while consistently moderating his position on tech regulation in committee settings.

Important to Note: The U.S. House of Representatives created a Crypto regulatory subcommittee within the House Financial Services Committee in 2019. Then, the members on that subcommittee did not meet to discuss regulatory or move legislation because most of the committee members were being funded by Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), who famously was convicted for defrauding FTX marketplace customers. While SBF was busy committing vast Crypto fraud, he was simultaneously funding most of the members of the US House Financial Services Committee from 2018-2022 via the “Mind The Gap” and FTX PACs as well as many other crypto PACs. The committee was disbanded in 2023, right around the time of SBF’s investigation and, later conviction. Many of the Dems and Republicans on the committee have gone on to “read the room” on Crypto and now, do not take Crypto PAC money and instead, take Crypto money directly from Crypto executives.

But, they still take their money.

Some of these folks even occasionally criticize the Crypto Industry, but have NEVER introduced regulatory legislation. Watch what congress members actually do, not what they say.

It’s always the money folks. And where there is a will, there is a way.

Meanwhile, Senator Cory Booker, Congressional Nominees Melissa Beam (D-IL) and Barry Moore (R- Alabama) and Representative Gregory Meeks have accepted significant crypto industry donations while remaining conspicuously quiet on calls for aggressive digital asset oversight.

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What Big Tech and Big Crypto Are Actually Spending

The numbers, when you look at them plainly, are staggering.

According to OpenSecrets, the crypto industry spent approximately $85 million in the 2024 election cycle — making it one of the single largest industry spenders in a midterm or general election in modern American history. The industry’s super PAC, Fairshake, became one of the most well-funded independent expenditure committees in the country, spending aggressively to defeat progressive Democrats who supported strict crypto oversight.

Their targets were not subtle. Representative Katie Porter (D-CA), who had been vocal about financial industry accountability, faced significant independent expenditure opposition. Representative Brad Sherman (D-CA), one of crypto’s most persistent congressional critics, has been repeatedly targeted by industry-funded campaigns designed to make his seat feel less safe.

In the 2026 primary cycle alone, Crypto PACs have spent $65 million according to Reuters and the AP.

Overall, Crypto PACs have spent $189 million in the midterms.

Political action committees (PACs) funded by the artificial intelligence industry have spent more than $52.8 million supporting and opposing candidates in House and Senate contests for the 2026 midterm elections. [1]

Similarly, on the AI and Big Tech side, Google, Microsoft, Meta, and Amazoncollectively spent over $70 million on lobbying in 2023 alone — a record figure — with significant portions directed at shaping, softening, or simply stalling any meaningful AI governance legislation. Their political action committees simultaneously funneled millions into the campaigns of Democrats who sit on key committees overseeing technology policy.

The message being sent to congressional Democrats is not subtle: regulate us aggressively and we will fund your primary opponent and take you down.

The Very Real Dangers of Congressional Inaction

This is where the conversation stops being abstract and starts being genuinely alarming.

On AI: Without federal regulation, there are currently no binding national standards governing how AI systems make decisions about your credit, your job application, your medical care, or your legal proceedings. Deepfake technology can be used to manipulate elections and commit financial fraud at scale. AI-generated disinformation is flooding social media with no accountability framework in place. The European Union passed comprehensive AI regulation in 2024. The United States has issued weak executive orders and held hearings. That’s it. No legislation.

On Data Centers: The explosive growth of AI infrastructure is creating serious environmental and energy grid concerns that remain almost entirely unaddressed by federal policy. Communities in Virginia, Texas, and Georgia are watching water supplies and power grids strain under the weight of facilities that face minimal federal oversight.

On Crypto: Without meaningful regulation, retail investors remain extraordinarily vulnerable. The collapse of FTX wiped out billions in ordinary Americans’ savings. Crypto platforms continue operating with disclosure standards that would be laughable in any other financial sector. Money laundering risks remain significant and documented.

We know with certainty, the Republicans, writ large will never support Crypto or AI regulation.

The Democratic Party built its modern identity on the idea that it stands between ordinary Americans and the unchecked power of wealthy industries. On AI, crypto, and Big Tech, that identity is being quietly sold — one campaign contribution at a time.

The voters who need protection from algorithmic bias, crypto fraud, and AI manipulation are not the ones writing the checks. The companies that need regulating are.

Until that fundamental imbalance changes, don’t expect Congress to change either.

You all know what to do…

Marienewmanstudio.com