Senate’s Tech Policy Heavyweights Eye Exit, Signaling New Era

Congress will lose leading tech policy champions as a slate of seasoned lawmakers committed to holding the industry accountable are poised to leave.

Several senators retiring or seeking other office—including Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.)—have built decades-long reputations as critics of tech companies and advocates for new regulations to rein in the industry’s power and ensure stronger online safety and privacy protections. The expected departures will be a loss for the institution, their fellow colleagues said, but the priorities will remain, especially as tech companies rapidly develop new products with the rise of artificial intelligence ...