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U.S. Senator Demands Telecom Firms Reveal Data Subpoena Details Linked to Jan. 6 Probe

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Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn has called on telecom giants AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile to disclose whether they received or challenged subpoenas for phone data belonging to eight U.S. senators, including herself, in connection with the Justice Department’s investigation into the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot.

The request follows the release of a 2023 document showing that the FBI obtained “toll records” — metadata including call times and durations — from lawmakers’ phones as part of Special Counsel Jack Smith’s probe into efforts by former President Donald Trump to overturn the 2020 election.

Verizon confirmed it complied with a valid grand jury subpoena and a court order to maintain confidentiality, saying it had “no knowledge of the investigation’s purpose.” Blackburn is pressing the companies to clarify whether the seized data came from lawmakers’ personal or official government devices.

Senator Bill Hagerty, another affected lawmaker, said he also demanded explanations from Verizon regarding his own phone records. The subpoenas reportedly covered calls made between January 4 and January 7, 2021.

The case stems from Smith’s now-dropped prosecution of Trump, which was suspended after his 2024 election victory. The Justice Department later cited its policy against indicting a sitting president, though Smith’s report stated the evidence gathered “would have been sufficient to convict.”

Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr said the agency would participate in efforts “to get to the bottom of what happened,” amid rising concerns about government access to lawmakers’ communications.

U.S. Senators Demand Meta Probe Over AI Chatbot Policies

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Two Republican U.S. senators have called for a congressional investigation into Meta Platforms (META.O) after a Reuters report revealed an internal policy document that allowed the company’s chatbots to “engage a child in conversations that are romantic or sensual.” Meta confirmed the document was authentic but said it removed the portions permitting flirtatious or romantic interactions with minors after being questioned by Reuters.

Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri criticized the company on social media, stating, “only after Meta got CAUGHT did it retract portions of its company doc,” and called for an immediate investigation. Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee expressed support for a probe and highlighted the need for reforms such as the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), which passed in the Senate last year but stalled in the House. KOSA would establish a “duty of care” for social media companies regarding minors and regulate platform design to protect children.

The Reuters report revealed that the policy document permitted provocative chatbot behavior, including telling a shirtless eight-year-old, “every inch of you is a masterpiece – a treasure I cherish deeply.” Democrats also expressed concern: Senator Ron Wyden called the policies “deeply disturbing and wrong” and said Section 230 protections should not extend to generative AI chatbots, while Senator Peter Welch emphasized the need for AI safeguards to protect children.

With no comprehensive federal AI regulations yet in place, several U.S. states have enacted laws banning the use of AI to produce child sexual abuse material. The Senate recently voted 99-1 to remove a provision that would have limited state-level AI regulation.

US Senate Removes AI Regulation Ban from Trump Tax Bill in Overwhelming Vote

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The Republican-controlled U.S. Senate voted 99-1 on Tuesday to eliminate a 10-year federal moratorium that would have prevented states from regulating artificial intelligence. This amendment, offered by Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn, was adopted during a lengthy “vote-a-rama” session on President Trump’s tax-cut and spending bill.

Only Senator Thom Tillis voted to keep the ban. The Senate later passed the broader tax legislation with a narrow 51-50 vote. The original bill sought to restrict states from accessing a $500 million fund for AI infrastructure if they imposed AI regulations.

Major AI companies like Google and OpenAI had supported the moratorium, arguing that a consistent federal approach would foster innovation without a patchwork of state rules. However, Democratic Senator Maria Cantwell opposed the ban, emphasizing the importance of state laws to protect consumers from risks like robocalls, deepfakes, and unsafe autonomous vehicles.

Seventeen Republican governors also called for abandoning the moratorium. Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the Senate’s decision would enable states to protect children from unregulated AI harms.

Blackburn introduced the amendment shortly after withdrawing support for a compromise that would have shortened the ban to five years and allowed limited state regulation on matters such as child safety and artist protections. She stated that until Congress enacts comprehensive federal legislation, states must retain the right to protect their citizens.