President Trump is touting the benefits of AI data centers after Texas moved to more strictly regulate the industry, which has rapidly become a political lightning rod across the political spectrum.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Trump waded into the debate during an interview last week, saying it would be a mistake to push back on data centers following Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R)\u00a0placing a moratorium on them, pending audits from regulatory agencies.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not taking positions,\u201d the president told Punchbowl News. \u201cI just think it\u2019s a mistake because there are other communities that want it. When a community wants it, it means a lot of money is going to come into that community.\u201d<\/p>\n
Trump said if he were a governor, he \u201cwould want data centers so badly,\u201d adding, \u201cTaxes are going to go way down because this is a tremendous source of income.\u201d<\/p>\n
Trump\u2019s comments come as data centers have emerged as a hot-button issue going into the midterms, with Democrats looking at the issue as an opportunity to go on the offensive against Republicans.<\/p>\n
Polls show widespread disapproval among Americans regarding data centers. A Gallup poll released in May found that 71 percent of Americans said they oppose constructing data centers in their local area, including 48 percent who said they were strongly opposed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
On the left, much of the opposition is driven by concerns about the environmental impact of the industry, which uses huge amounts of electricity and water. Republicans are more divided on the centers, but opposition on the right is growing as more communities face potential construction in their backyard.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe concerns on the right are mostly local control [and] community benefits,\u201d said Chris Johnson, a Republican strategist, noting \u201cthe conservative instinct to protect your community.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sarah Wagoner, an environmental and energy policy analyst at the conservative Heritage Foundation, argued the differing opinions on data centers among conservatives come down to the varying local realities surrounding constructing data centers.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cData centers in a state like Texas versus a state like New York versus up in the Midwest, they\u2019re going to have different realities, different environmental and energy impacts that come with them,\u201d Wagoner said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe biggest concern that people are facing around whether or not building a data center is going to increase power bills or increase costs for those communities,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Abbott\u2019s pause on the approval of data centers came amid growing backlash in the state to the data center boom.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In a statement responding to Trump\u2019s comments on criticizing the state\u2019s handling of data centers, Abbott\u2019s spokesman Andrew Maheleris argued the audit was needed because less than 10 percent of data centers complied with the state in reporting their power and water use.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cGovernor Abbott\u2019s top priority is to protect Texans\u2019 safety and quality of life and ensure the integrity of our power grid and water supply,\u201d Maheleris said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMany are unaware that ERCOT [Electric Reliability Council of Texas] is tracking a more than 500% increase in peak electricity demand. This unprecedented growth could endanger the reliability and stability of the Texas electric grid,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The governor set a number of standards for data centers that include requiring them to pay for their own electrical infrastructure, reuse their own water, reduce the cost of electricity for Texans, not to disrupt residential neighborhoods and quality of life, as well as eliminating their reliance on taxpayer-funded incentives.<\/p>\n
Abbott\u2019s office announced on Thursday and Friday that four data center companies said they will go along with the standards and guidelines set by the governor.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Last month, Trump announced he will expand his Ratepayer Protection Pledge to have data centers \u201cpay their own way\u201d for the electricity they use, an acknowledgement that data centers\u2019 massive use of electricity has the potential to raise costs for consumers. At the same time, the president noted the \u201ctremendous numbers of jobs\u201d data centers could bring to communities.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe is threading the needle perfectly here to bring both sides of this argument within the conservative movement where each side has legitimate arguments and concerns, and moving forward in a way that focuses on his main goal which is strategic competition with China, but provides economic and local benefits, and prepares our workforce force and our economy broadly for the latter half of the 21st century,\u201d Johnson said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
However, critics note Trump\u2019s family\u2019s close relationship with big tech, having invested in data centers. Trump has denied having any involvement in his family\u2019s business.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Many Democrats argue data centers are steamrolling communities and making their taxpayers foot the bill.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Last month, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) issued the first statewide moratorium on data center development.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIf a business comes into a community, usually it works really hard to foster a good relationship with that community. Instead, this is simply a gold rush and a land grab meant to turn a quick profit,\u201d Rep. Suhas Subramanyam (D-Va.) told The Hill.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Subramanyam\u2019s district includes Loudoun County, which is home to over 200 data centers and has been dubbed \u201cData Center Alley.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The congressman said he has witnessed a growing number of Republicans voicing concerns over data centers, but not nearly enough to work together on legislation to address the matter.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m at a point where I don\u2019t feel like I can pass them in this Congress with a Republican majority,\u201d the congressman said. \u201cI\u2019ll have to count on a Democratic majority in the next Congress to find a path to getting them on the floor and passing them.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Data centers have emerged as a major front in the battle for the House majority.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m pleasantly surprised that it\u2019s becoming a campaign issue,\u201d Subrmanyam, who has highlighted the issue in his own reelection campaign, said. \u201cI\u2019ve been shouting from the rooftops for most of my political career about how we need to hold the data center industry more accountable.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Johnson said Republicans are missing an opportunity if they are playing defense on data centers ahead of the midterms.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we\u2019re on the defensive about stuff like data centers, we end up contradicting ourselves quite a bit,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s like what do you mean you\u2019re supporting innovation, economic growth, and job creation, but you\u2019re against the main driver of all of those things in our current moment.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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