When Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) sponsored a bill to fight AI-generated revenge porn, he didn’t expect to get pushback from anyone, even lawmakers from across the aisle. But Democrats have proven that playing politics is far more important than the struggles of Americans, even if it means innocent lives are ruined. 

“Revenge porn” is the act of sharing private, sexually explicit images of someone without their consent. Revenge porn often happens after a relationship ends, when one person shares these images to seek revenge. There are laws against revenge porn because of the emotional distress and harm it causes for its victims. 

In the past, revenge porn relied on existing images of the victim or manipulated images via Photoshop. As AI gains a foothold, it allows a deeply unsettling aspect of revenge porn to emerge.  

AI revenge porn uses artificial intelligence to create fake images or videos that make it appear as if someone is engaged in sexual acts. This technology can manipulate existing photos or videos to create realistic-looking images. Like traditional revenge porn, deepfake AI revenge porn is intended to humiliate or control the victim, and it can have severe emotional and psychological effects.  

Many jurisdictions are working on laws to address and combat this abuse. No one should have any reason to block legislation aiming to help vulnerable men, women, and children victimized by revenge porn.  

But in a stunning display of political bias, one Democratic senator did just that. 

When Ted Cruz (R-TX) sponsored the Take It Down Act, the bill seemed likely to pass during a routine session before Congress took a six-week break for the 2024 presidential election. The bill enjoyed widespread bipartisan support, including from Democratic Senators Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), Richard Blumenthal (Conn.), Jacky Rosen (Nev.), Laphonza Butler (Calif.), John Hickenlooper (Colo.), Raphael Warnock (Ga.), and Martin Heinrich (N.M.). 

The Take It Down Act would make it illegal to publish deepfake porn. Big tech companies must remove the images within 48 hours if a victim requests them. 

The bill aims to protect victims like Mani, a 15-year-old high school student from New Jersey. Last year, she found out that boys in her class used AI to create fake nude images of her and her classmates and shared them online. She appeared before the Commerce Committee in June to plead for tighter restrictions on revenge porn, which primarily targets young females and children. 

In a stunning betrayal of his own young constituent, Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) raised a last-minute objection to the proposed Take It Down Act. 

Cruz mentioned Wednesday evening that he shared his bill with Democratic and Republican colleagues two weeks ago to avoid any possible objections. He thought it would be included in the list of non-controversial items that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Republican leaders had agreed to finish before they left for the fall campaign. 

Jeff Giertz, a spokesperson for Booker, claimed that Cruz did not try to work with Booker and other senators to address their “real concerns” about the bill. These alleged “real concerns” were not explained. In a baffling twist, the spokesperson mentioned that the sharing of nonconsensual explicit images online is a serious issue that Booker has worked to combat. 

Cruz noted that his bill includes some of the same language Booker requested in another bill called the Shield Act. The Senate passed the Shield Act on July 10, and it would make it a federal crime for people to share private, sexually explicit, or nude images without consent. 

Cruz explained that the Take It Down Act would go even further by making it illegal to create and share AI-generated sexually explicit images. He pointed out that the Shield Act was changed at Booker’s request before it was allowed to pass. Cruz argued that Booker no longer supports the language he previously drafted, supported, and voted for. 

Booker gave no reason for opposing common-sense legislation to protect the innocent, but it doesn’t take a genius to understand why. 

Booker has long supported Cruz’s general election rival, Rep. Colin Allred (D-TX). Last year, Booker made a passionate fundraising appeal for Allred on the social media platform X.  

The slime coating on Democrats seems thicker with every word or action. Their lack of moral fiber is frayed. Need proof? Look no further than this Democratic ploy to keep a rival out of office at the expense of the nation’s innocent.