President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social on August 31, 2026, criticizing communities opposing AI data centers and warning they risk becoming "backwards and poor." He urged acceptance of the facilities for their economic benefits, highlighting job creation and lower taxes as key advantages. "The only reason that communities throughout the U.S.A. should not want Data Centers is if they want to end up being backwards and poor. If they want to be successful and rich, with far lower taxes and jobs all over the place, let Data Reign," Trump said [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10].

Trump also claimed China "could not be happier" about the anti–data center movement gaining ground in the US. "Actually, they can’t believe it is happening!" he added [1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10].

Opposition to new AI data centers has grown sharply ahead of the November 2026 midterm elections, cutting across both parties. Concerns cited include environmental impact, high energy consumption, noise pollution, and rising electricity bills. A March 2026 Gallup poll found about 71% of Americans opposed new AI data centers near their homes. A May 2026 Gallup survey reaffirmed that roughly 7 in 10 Americans opposed local data center construction [1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9].

Politicians from states including Michigan, Texas, New York, and Ohio have either expressed concerns or proposed temporary construction pauses. Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Nebraska Governor Jim Pillen imposed moratoriums or executive orders restricting new data centers and limiting tax incentives. The National Republican Senatorial Committee warned in an August internal memo that voter backlash on data centers could hurt GOP campaigns in several states [3, 4, 7, 9].

Opponents argue the facilities raise electricity costs and strain water resources, cause noise pollution, and have limited local job creation relative to their demands. Ohio Senator JD Vance noted, "When people build them, they have to build the power plants along with the datacenters. I think probably 99% of the backlash to datacenters has come in areas where building a datacenter means higher utility and higher electricity for the people on the ground" [1].

Despite these concerns, Trump called the data center industry a "Golden Goose" vital for American prosperity and pushed deregulation efforts. He urged builders to contribute power back to the grid to ease local resistance [1, 3, 7, 8].

China is reportedly planning to nearly double its data center capacity within five years as competition with the US intensifies in artificial intelligence technology [2].

With the midterm elections just months away, the debate over data center construction remains a contentious issue in political and local arenas.