Trump says datacenter opponents ‘want to end up being backwards and poor’
Three-quarters of Americans said in a recent poll that they oppose datacenters being built next to their homes Donald Trump has criticized communities pushing back against datacenter projects across the US amid a growing backlash, warning those that reject them risk becoming “backwards and poor”. As controversy surrounding local datacenter plans continues to swirl around election campaigns…
A recent poll found that three-quarters of Americans oppose datacenters being built near their homes. In a recent Truth Social post, President Donald Trump warned communities that reject datacenter projects risk becoming "backwards and poor." He suggested that those who do not want datacenters should be responsible for their own economic and social decline.
Trump believes that areas with ample land, low-cost power, and tax incentives should embrace datacenters for success and job creation. He also expressed concern that China is thriving as a result of the anti-datacenter movement. The vice president, JD Vance, agreed with Trump, stating that datacenters are crucial to the AI economy.
However, some users criticized Trump's stance, pointing out the potential impact on local resources such as water and food. Despite this pushback, over 75 datacenter projects worth approximately $130bn were blocked or delayed in the first three months of 2026 according to the research group Data Center Watch. Communities such as Monterey Park, Prince William county, Virginia, and Wake county, North Carolina, have successfully resisted datacenters.
Environmental groups have also called for a halt in new datacenter development due to climate concerns, water scarcity, and rising electricity costs.
Written by urgent.news from Guardian Technology's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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