WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Monday attacked opponents of artificial intelligence data centres, saying they would end up “backwards and poor” and were helping rival China.
A backlash against the energy-guzzling centres has become a surprise issue in November’s US midterm elections, with Trump at odds with many Republicans.
Polls show a majority of Americans are now against building the centres, amid complaints about rising electricity bills and noise from the facilities.
“The only reason that communities throughout the U.S.A. should not want Data Centres is if they want to end up being backwards and poor,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.
“If they want to be successful and rich, with far lower taxes and jobs all over the place, let Data Reign,” Trump said.
“If we kill the Golden Goose, you will only have yourselves to blame.”
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) August 31, 2026
Republicans are already at risk of losing control of Congress in the midterms as the Iran war drives up the cost of living, and the data centres are proving a fresh headache.
Opposition to the facilities is growing, according to opinion polls.
And US candidates in at least 21 races across 18 states have aired television advertisements mentioning data centres this cycle, according to marketing data cited by US media, almost evenly divided between both parties.
But Trump has maintained his support, even as his administration earlier this year signed up top tech firms to a voluntary “Ratepayer Protection Pledge” to protect consumers from higher power prices.
Trump, who is due to host Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House in September, said Beijing would be pleased with the situation.
“China could not be happier with this anti Data Center movement. Actually, they can’t believe it is happening!” Trump said.
China is on course to nearly double its data centre capacity within the next five years, as an AI race with the United States intensifies.
Trump’s Vice President JD Vance took a more measured tone as he headed on a campaign visit to Michigan on Monday.
“Probably 99 percent of the backlash to data centres has come in areas where building a data centre means higher utility and higher electricity,” Vance told reporters.
“If you build a data centre, you should be putting power back into the grid, not taking it out. And if that is happening, I don’t think the data centres are that controversial.”
