The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) ventured into uncharted digital territory on Friday by releasing a campaign advertisement featuring an AI-generated video of Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer.
The deepfake clip, shared on the Senate Republicans’ official social media channels, depicts a robotic version of Schumer repeating the phrase – “every day gets better for us,” in the context of the ongoing government shutdown, reports Guardian.
A small on-screen note identifies the footage as artificially created. The post, captioned “Week 3 of the Schumer Shutdown – ‘Every day gets better for us,’” loops the AI-rendered Schumer, highlighting the Democrats’ approach to the current standoff.
Observers online were taken aback, noting that while the quote is genuine originally reported by Punchbowl News – the NRSC opted to synthesize the video rather than simply use archival footage.
In the original interview, Schumer described the Democrats’ shutdown strategy, saying “Their whole theory was – threaten us, bamboozle us and we would submit in a day or two.”
The ad’s narrator adds a critical commentary over the deepfake imagery, accusing Schumer of treating Americans’ livelihoods as “just a game” and portraying Democrats as reveling in the political impasse.
Joanna Rodriguez, NRSC communications director, defended the use of AI in a statement on X, saying “AI is here and not going anywhere. Adapt & win or pearl clutch & lose.” Schumer has not responded to requests for comment.
This move follows similar incidents involving AI-generated content by Republican figures. Recently, President Donald Trump shared a deepfake video on Truth Social showing Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries making fabricated statements about immigration and voter fraud.
In 2023, after President Joe Biden announced his re-election bid, the Republican National Committee released an AI-based ad projecting a dystopian future if Biden were re-elected, accompanied by a disclaimer noting it was “Built entirely with AI imagery.”
