House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries made his most urgent appeal yet on Monday, calling for immediate legislative oversight of artificial intelligence in response to escalating warnings that the rapidly evolving technology could pose an existential threat to humanity if left unchecked.

During his weekly press conference, Jeffries emphasized that the explosive growth of AI and its associated challenges are not hypothetical concerns. "The risks are real, regardless of what Donald Trump thinks about this issue," he stated. "Congress must act swiftly and decisively to moderate the pace of AI development, following the recommendations put forward by some of the nation's top AI experts, in order to safeguard the health, safety, and well-being of the American people."

Jeffries' call for regulatory measures comes just days after former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coulson issued a stark warning that AI could "kill us all." That statement prompted Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and xAI CEO Elon Musk to jointly advocate for a slowdown in AI development. Trump, however, has downplayed these risks and remains firmly committed to accelerating AI technological breakthroughs.

Jeffries urged Speaker Mike Johnson on Monday to keep Congress in session "until decisive action is taken to protect the safety and welfare of the American people, as concerns among experts within the AI industry continue to mount." Johnson has cancelled the final two weeks of scheduled sessions before the midterm elections, meaning the House is set to leave Capitol Hill on Thursday and will not reconvene until November 9. The Speaker has given no indication he will reconsider this decision, and he has remained noncommittal on whether the House will consider AI safety legislation before the election—or even whether such legislation will be placed on the agenda at all.

Jeffries also noted that the Democratic-only AI committee he established in the current Congress will soon begin releasing policy recommendations. He revealed plans to meet this week with the committee's three co-chairs. At the same time, he criticized Johnson for refusing to reinstate the bipartisan AI task force, which would have allowed lawmakers from both parties to collaborate on the issue. "We want to ensure American entrepreneurs and companies can continue to lead in this space," Jeffries said of the work being advanced by the Democratic-led committee. "But on the other hand, we must also ensure that the American people can genuinely benefit from AI's advantages without suffering its real, severe, and dangerous negative consequences."

While positioning Democrats as leaders on AI policy for both the current and next Congress, Jeffries rejected suggestions from some colleagues to create a dedicated AI committee if Democrats win the majority in November. "We're focused on substance, not process," he said, adding that any discussions about special committees would take place after Election Day.

Jeffries does, however, support the Ratepayer Protection Act, a bipartisan proposal designed to shield Americans from the energy costs associated with the data center boom, which is scheduled for a vote on Tuesday. "It's a step in the right direction," he said, "but there is still more work to be done."