U.S. Congressman Don Beyer, who is pursuing a Ph.D. in artificial intelligence at George Mason University, returned to the Practical AI podcast to discuss some of the most pressing AI challenges facing the United States and the world. Bringing both political experience and technical expertise to the conversation, Beyer addressed a wide range of concerns including regulatory frameworks, cybersecurity vulnerabilities exposed by advanced models, and the intensifying technological competition between the U.S. and China over AI supremacy. During the wide-ranging discussion, Beyer and host Chris Benson explored several critical issues shaping AI's future, including AI-driven job displacement, mass surveillance capabilities, autonomous weapons development, and the philosophical questions surrounding artificial general intelligence and consciousness. The congressman emphasized the need for bipartisan governance approaches to tackle these challenges while maintaining American competitiveness in the global AI race. His unique position as both a policymaker and active AI researcher provided rare insights into how lawmakers are grappling with the complex technical and societal implications of rapidly advancing artificial intelligence technology.