| SURVEY SAYS: Talk about a divided nation: A POLITICO/Focaldata found there was no decisive winner in the first-and-only vice presidential debate of the 2024 election, our Melanie Mason reports. THE BUZZ: RIPPLE EFFECTS — Scott Wiener’s marquee bill on artificial intelligence might be dead, but the ramifications of taking on tech could follow him as he eyes higher office. Wiener, a San Francisco Democrat, stepped into a quagmire of controversy this year by being one of the first lawmakers in the nation to propose safeguards against catastrophic AI hazards, roiling an industry with deep connections around the globe and even deeper pockets. After months of fierce lobbying from tech’s biggest players — and Democratic heavyweights like former Speaker Nancy Pelosi — Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed Wiener’s bill on Sunday. It was a win for the sector, which deluged Newsom with complaints that the bill would stifle California’s lucrative Silicon Valley. But the battle also raises questions about Wiener’s relationship with tech workers and executives — a key San Francisco demographic that he has successfully courted for more than a decade and could prove critical in a future run for Pelosi’s House seat. “I used to be supportive of [Wiener] because of his YIMBY positions, but his recent extremist anti-tech and anti-AI stances have turned me against his candidacy for Congress,” tweeted Arun Rao, lead project manager in generative AI at Meta, who declined to elaborate on the record. “He has much to do but my sense is the entire tech community has turned against him.” Wiener is no stranger to bruising fights, and has rarely backed down from powerful interest groups’ pressure. In an interview with Playbook, he recalled his battles over housing laws, where he was urged to drop legislation that would have given the state more control over local zoning — or risk political self-immolation. The bill failed in the Legislature, but Wiener’s political career has soared in the years since. He’s established a reputation in San Francisco as a pro-housing firebrand, garnering support from moderates while irritating pro-labor progressives and union groups that have denied him election endorsements. Tech workers drawn to the YIMBY (Yes In My Backyard) movement by the area’s high housing costs comprise a substantial chunk of Wiener’s base, supplying money and votes. “What I have found is that a lot of people respect that you’re willing to fight the fight, even if they disagree with you,” he told Playbook. “On AI safety, the polling shows strong public support, even strong among tech workers. And I have had a lot of tech workers come up to me on the streets of San Francisco and tell me quietly that they support the bill. … I have broad and deep relationships within the tech community in San Francisco.” Wiener is unlikely to suffer any repercussions in his current office — the bill sailed through the Legislature with remarkable ease, earning support on both sides of the aisle and, surprisingly, even a late-in-the-game endorsement from Elon Musk. But the political stakes came into sharper view when Pelosi waded into the scene. Pelosi’s dissent was viewed cynically by some Wiener backers, who saw her opposition to SB 1047 as a proxy fight for the brewing battle between the legislator and her daughter, party organizer Christine Pelosi, who is expected to run for her mother’s seat. Christine has declined to say if she’s considering it. The elder Pelosi has long enjoyed a close relationship with Silicon Valley venture capitalist Ron Conway, who lobbied hard against the bill. Conway has backed Wiener’s campaigns in the past, but his artificial intelligence crusade this year may have unraveled some of that support — and VC’s with a bone to pick could easily dump millions into a House race. “I am surprised that Scott chose to pick this AI bill fight to this degree,” a Conway confidant told The Information’s Josh Koehn last month, “because it will definitely have implications on anything he does for the future.” Potential grudges aside, it’s unlikely that even a dogged lawmaker like Wiener could get such sweeping AI rules through a gridlocked Congress. Although President Joe Biden has taken some executive action to enact guardrails around artificial intelligence, Wiener’s bill was widely seen as the best chance to regulate the technology in the face of inaction from Capitol Hill. Whether that dynamic makes a difference to Wiener’s haters is yet to be seen. Todd David, a member of the senator’s inner circle of advisers, argued that the AI fight won’t hinder Wiener’s political aspirations in San Francisco. “I have had conversations with leaders in the tech community who are very big fans of Scott,” he said. “They did not like 1047, but they’ve said to me explicitly that once 1047 is done they’re back to being big fans and supporters.” Jane Kim, a former San Francisco supervisor who narrowly lost to Wiener in the race for state Senate in 2016, now leads the progressive Working Families Party. She said Wiener has earned a reputation as someone who has his thumb on the big issues. Even if he misses the mark, he tends to earn voters’ respect, she said. “Scott is not afraid to make enemies,” Kim said. “And that’s a strength for him as an elected leader.” — with help from Jeremy B. White GOOD MORNING. Happy Wednesday. Thanks for waking up with Playbook. You can text us at 916-562-0685 — save it as “CA Playbook” in your contacts. Or drop us a line at lkorte@politico.com and dgardiner@politico.com, or on X — @DustinGardiner and @Lara_Korte. WHERE’S GAVIN? Returning from Mexico City. More below.
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