At a moment when artificial intelligence is reshaping the foundations of modern life, the United States finds itself politically paralyzed on the question of how — or whether — to govern it. President Trump's dismissal of AI safety concerns as a hoax has effectively closed the door on near-term federal legislation, leaving a divided Congress to argue over competing visions while the technology advances without binding guardrails. The episode reveals something older than any algorithm: the difficulty democratic institutions face when urgent technical realities collide with entrenched political