OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Vice President Kamala Harris is the de facto Artificial Intelligence Czar of the United States and after you see her explain what artificial intelligence is that thought may frighten you.
The vice president sat with consumer protection and civil rights experts as she explained what AI is as if she were explaining it to a class of first graders.
“The first part of this issue that should be articulated is AI is kind of a fancy thing. First of all, it’s two letters. It means artificial intelligence,” the vice president said. “It’s about machine learning.”
“The machine is taught, and part of the issue here is what information is going into the machine, that will then determine — and we can predict then, if we think about what information is going in – what then will be produced, in terms of decisions and opinions that may be made through that process,” she said.
Kamala Harris explains AI:
“AI is kind of a fancy thing. First of all, it’s two letters. It means ‘Artificial Intelligence.'” pic.twitter.com/yurodfTOY9
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) July 12, 2023
Harris went on to say that she was concerned about AI’s ability to spread “misinformation and disinformation” and said that senior citizens were particularly vulnerable.
She then said other minority groups were vulnerable but did not give a reason why that would be the case.
“Innovation has so much possibility to improve the condition of human life. And to the extent that we can encourage that approach, we should,” she said. “We should not dampen or in any way slow down innovation that can improve the condition of people’s lives. And we must also ensure that in that process we are not trampling on people’s rights.”
But sounding ridiculous is par for the course with Harris.
Last week Harris made an appearance at the Essence Festival of Culture and proceeded to indulge the captive audience with another of her famous word salads.
She was asked by the panel hosts how she would describe the word “culture” which for most people would be simple, but Vice President Harris is not most people.
“Culture is — it is a reflection of our moment and our time. Right? And present culture is the way we express how we’re feeling about the moment and we should always find times to express how we feel about the moment. That is a reflection of joy. Because, you know…it comes in the morning,” she said with her trademark cackle.
“We have to find ways to also express the way we feel about the moment in terms of just having language and a connection to how people are experiencing life. And I think about it in that way, too,” she said.
It was a ridiculous response but, sadly, far from the only time she has made a mockery of the English language.
In May the White House hosted the ASEAN summit when she spun a paragraph on climate change that got #WordSaladKamala trending on Twitter.
“That is especially true when it comes to the climate crisis. Which is why we will work together, and continue to work together, to address these issues, to tackle these challenges, and to work together as we continue to work operating from the new norms, rules, and agreements, that we will convene to work together on. To galvanize global action. With that I thank you all. This is a matter of urgent priority for all of us. And I know we will work together,” she said.
In 22 seconds she used the phrase “work together” five times and used the synonym “galvanize” but never really got further than that.
In March of 2022 she spoke to with NBC’s Savannah Guthrie following President Joe Biden’s first formal State of the Union Address after the host pressed Harris on whether the administration was considering a change in tactics since, despite the imposition of heavy sanctions by the U.S., NATO allies, and other Western nations, Russia’s full-scale assault on Ukraine was ongoing.
“So what else do we have to throw at this when Putin so far is undeterred?” Guthrie asked.
“Well, we are going to continue to do what we’ve done,” Harris replied.
“For example, in the sanctions, it’s been sanctions against their financial institutions, against their oligarchs, where we are targeting their mansions and their jets,” Harris continued.
“What we’re going to continue to do is stand firm with our allies in terms of reassessing what we are doing with sanctions,” she said.
