Trump Says ‘Let Data Reign’ As He Slams Data Center Backlash: Communities Risk Being ‘Backwards And Poor’

President Donald Trump has backed the AI infrastructure buildout as data center projects face growing public resistance.

• Trump warns communities against rejecting data centers, saying they risk losing jobs, investment and lower taxes.
• A Gallup poll found 71% of Americans oppose having an AI data center built in their local area.
• Amazon, Microsoft, Alphabet and Meta are expected to spend about $745 billion on capex this year, much of it on AI infrastructure.

President Donald Trump has thrown his weight behind America’s booming data center industry, warning communities that resist new facilities risk being left “backwards and poor” as the U.S. races to build the infrastructure needed to power the artificial intelligence boom.

In a Truth Social post Monday, Trump said communities should welcome data centers for the jobs, economic growth and potentially lower taxes they could bring, while warning that opposition could benefit China.

“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 wrote. “If they want to be successful and rich, with far lower taxes and jobs all over the place, let Data Reign.”

AI Infra Is ‘Golden Goose’

Trump called data centers a “Golden Goose” and said that if the U.S. “kill[s]” it, communities would have only themselves to blame. He added that China “could not be happier” about the growing anti-data-center movement.

David Sacks recently said that “Trump is the best ally that innovators have in Washington.” Sacks served as U.S. President Donald Trump’s White House AI and Crypto Czar from January 2025 through March 2026.

The comments come as the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure runs into increasing backlash in some states. A Gallup survey in May found that 71% of Americans oppose building an AI data center in their local area, including 48% who strongly oppose such projects.  

AI Data Centers Spark Community Pushback

The data-center boom is facing growing grassroots pushback. In Michigan, residents in Saline Township voted against a proposed $16 billion OpenAI-Oracle data center, though the project ultimately moved forward. Meanwhile, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott ordered a statewide audit of data centers this month, effectively pausing new projects amid growing concerns over their impact on the power grid.  

Big Tech companies including Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Meta and OpenAI continue to argue that data centers are essential to meeting surging AI demand and bring jobs and investment, but are increasingly under pressure to address communities’ concerns.

Much of the public pushback centers on electricity demand, water consumption, noise, tax incentives and concerns that communities bear the costs while receiving relatively few permanent jobs.  

Big Tech Has $745 Billion Riding On The AI Buildout

That puts Trump’s administration in a delicate position, especially with the midterm elections approaching. The president has positioned AI infrastructure as both an economic and national-security priority, particularly as the U.S. competes with China for leadership in AI. 

For investors, Trump’s latest comments reinforce the administration’s broader push to accelerate AI infrastructure buildout. Nvidia Corp. CEO Jensen Huang on Monday backed the case for data centers, saying that the AI boom is helping “reindustrialize” America after decades of manufacturing moving overseas.

Amazon, Microsoft, Alphabet and Meta are leading the spending spree, with their combined 2026 capital expenditure expected to reach roughly $745 billion this year, much of it directed toward AI infrastructure and data centers. 

Amazon recently lifted its 2026 capex forecast to $220 billion, while Alphabet expects $195 billion-$205 billion, Microsoft about $190 billion, and Meta $130 billion-$145 billion. 

On Stocktwits, the retail sentiment was ‘bearish’ for AMZN, GOOGL and MSFT and ‘neutral’ for META on Tuesday.

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