Freshman wishlist: Husted wants Congress to embrace AI
Freshman Sen. Jon Husted (R-Ohio) wants to beat China at innovation, make U.S. students more competitive, balance the federal budget and save everybody time in the Capitol building — and he sees AI as the key.
Why it matters: The Senate, with its median age of 65, is usually slow to grasp and adapt to new technologies. Husted hopes to buck the trend.
Husted sees innovation as a driving force of economic prosperity, creating jobs, helping Congress to balance the budget and strengthening military might.
"So what is it that's happening right now that can differentiate us? It's AI," he told Axios in an exclusive interview, "because AI is the most powerful assistive technology in my lifetime — probably in the history of the world."
The intrigue: Husted is an avid user of artificial intelligence tools at work and home. He uses three AI apps that compare with each other.
"I learned everything about you before you came in here today," he told Axios, laughing.
He once used an AI chatbot while presiding over the Senate floor to help settle a debate about the parliamentarian and what actions were possible.
Zoom in: Husted wants to be a leader on the issue in the Senate. He introduced bipartisan legislation with Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) that would ban the Chinese AI tool DeepSeek from government phones.
He has also introduced legislation that calls for leveraging AI to streamline the code of federal regulations.
Husted stressed the ways AI can help educators and students, something he worked on as lieutenant governor in Ohio. He applauded President Trump's recent executive order calling for schools to teach AI.
"We just need to make sure that America is winning," Husted said, "and the policies and the laws of this land will determine whether we can go fast enough to keep up."
Zoom out: Unlike his freshman colleagues, Husted will be on the campaign trail in 2026.
He's not too worried, saying, "I'm a new senator, but I am not new to the voters of Ohio."
Asked about the impact of Trump's tariffs on Ohio voters, he said he has faced a lot of questions and stressed the importance of trade deals getting reached quickly — especially with allies.
"But I think people in Ohio are giving the president the benefit of the doubt on tariffs, because they have been the victim of China's cheating and taking their jobs," he said.
The bottom line: Husted openly considered running for governor instead before ultimately deciding to take the Senate job.
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