Add The California Post on Google Adam Schiff wants to ban AI parodies of political candidates. The irony runs deep.
Recall that when Schiff impeached President Donald Trump in 2019, he made up a fake version of Trump’s phone call with Ukraine’s President Volodymr Zelensky.
When Republicans complained that Schiff had misrepresented the actual conversation, which was the core of his charge against Trump, Schiff claimed it was just a “parody.” No one was laughing — but that was his excuse.
Now Schiff is introducing a bill that would ban “misrepresentation through the use of content generated in whole or in part with the use of artificial intelligence” in political campaign ads.
It’s the second time Schiff has tried to suppress free speech this way — and it repeats the effort by California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who signed similar legislation in 2024 to protect Kamala Harris from AI “deep fake” parodies.
A federal judge threw out Newsom’s legislation last year, pointing out that it infringed on “constitutionally protected speech.” The judge added, wryly, that forcing AI-generated parodies to add disclaimers — which Schiff’s legislation also wants to do — “would kill the joke.”
At least Newsom made a feeble effort to acknowledge parody as a legitimate use of AI. Schiff’s legislation has no carveout for parody. It is as humorless as the man himself.
Schiff’s partner in this absurd effort is none other than Rep. Ro Khanna, a Democrat who knows the meaning of defamation — which is why he falsely accused several men of ties to Jeffrey Epstein in February.
Schiff likes to preen as a champion of free speech — when he’s defending Jimmy Kimmel.
But when it comes to everyone else’s speech — including AI videos that poke fun at Schiff and his colleagues — Schiff is suddenly eager to be the censor and to attach disclaimers to comedy and commentary.
There is a reason Democrats are trying to revive an idea that the courts have already killed, and it has a name: Spencer Pratt.
Pratt’s run for mayor of LA earlier this year inspired many creators to publish AI-generated videos mocking incumbent Mayor Karen Bass and Newsom.
Though Pratt’s campaign did not create these ads, they went viral and helped elevate his profile to the national level.
Anyone can make AI parodies, but conservatives have the edge, for the moment. That is why Schiff is making his move.
It’s a mockery of the First Amendment. Call it a parody.
