Trump Criticizes Communities Opposing Data Centers

<p class="wp-block-paragraph"><span class="section-lead">On Monday,</span> President Trump promoted continued data center construction and criticized opponents, despite growing bipartisan backlash ahead of the November midterms.</p>

<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“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,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “If we kill the Golden Goose, you will only have yourselves to blame.”</p>

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Trump says the only reason to oppose data centers is if communities want to be “backwards and poor.” <a href="https://t.co/cpi14lMGql">pic.twitter.com/cpi14lMGql</a></p>&mdash; Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) <a href="https://x.com/kaitlancollins/status/2094425823453331711?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 31, 2026</a></blockquote> </div></figure>

<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The president also posts a series of AI videos on social media. On Sunday night, he shared a video depicting the bombing of Kharg Island, a vital port for exporting Iran's oil products amid the US resuming major strikes on the country. The night before, Trump posted an AI video of himself kicking over a “Welcome to Lake Ontario” sign and planting down a “Welcome to Lake America” sign in its place.</p>

<p class="wp-block-paragraph">However, support for AI and the data centers that support them is largely unpopular. According to a report by Sophie Hurwitz, most Americans oppose a data center in their backyard. Hurwitz noted that data centers require significant space, energy, and water to operate, and they do not provide many jobs relative to the investment they require. Additionally, they can be noisy neighbors due to their cooling systems, and many include onsite gas turbines that emit smoke.</p>

<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Opposition to data centers is bipartisan, even in solidly GOP states like Florida.</p>