{"slug": "trump-communities-that-oppose-data-centers-will-be-backwards-and-poor", "title": "Trump: Communities That Oppose Data Centers Will Be “Backwards and Poor”", "summary": "President Trump on Monday promoted continued data center construction, warning that communities opposing them will end up 'backwards and poor,' despite growing bipartisan backlash ahead of the November midterms. Trump posted on Truth Social that the only reason communities should not want data centers is if they want to be 'backwards and poor,' and that killing the 'Golden Goose' would leave them to blame themselves. The statement comes as most Americans oppose data centers in their backyards, according to a May Gallup poll cited by Mother Jones, due to concerns about energy, water, noise, and pollution.", "body_md": "[Sign up for the free](https://www.motherjones.com/newsletters/?mj_oac=Article_Top_No_Oligarchs)\n\n*Mother Jones Daily*.On Monday, President Trump promoted continued data center construction and criticized opponents, despite growing bipartisan backlash ahead of the November midterms.\n\n“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](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/117190477440173795). “If we kill the Golden Goose, you will only have yourselves to blame.”\n\nThe president also posts an endless stream of AI videos on social media. On Sunday night, he [shared a video](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/117187722429803464) depicting the bombing of Kharg Island, a vital port for exporting Iran’s oil products amid the US resuming [major strikes on the country](https://www.reuters.com/world/iran-war-live-us-iran-resume-attacks-trump-says-kharg-island-is-being-blown-2026-08-31/). And the night before, Trump [posted an AI video](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/117180949829008293) of himself kicking over a “Welcome to Lake Ontario” sign and planting down a “Welcome to Lake America” sign in its place.\n\nBut boosting AI and the data centers that help power them is largely unpopular. As my colleague Sophie Hurwitz [wrote in May](https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2026/05/ai-data-center-gallup-opposition-american/), most Americans oppose a data center in their backyard. From Sophie:\n\n“Data centers need significant space, energy and water to operate, and they\n\n[don’t provide many jobs]relative to the investment they require. And they’re often unpleasant neighbors:[their cooling systems can be noisy], and many include onsite gas turbines that[belch black smoke into the air].\n\nOpposition to data centers is [truly bipartisan](https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2026/08/anti-ai-populism-is-reshaping-american-politics/), even in solidly GOP states [like Florida](https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2026/08/could-the-gop-lose-florida-over-data-centers/).", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/trump-communities-that-oppose-data-centers-will-be-backwards-and-poor", "canonical_source": "https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2026/08/trump-communities-that-oppose-data-centers-will-be-backwards-and-poor/", "published_at": "2026-08-31 17:09:43+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-09-01 11:52:35.786001+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["ai-infrastructure", "ai-policy"], "entities": ["Donald Trump", "Truth Social", "Mother Jones", "Sophie Hurwitz", "Gallup", "Kharg Island", "Lake Ontario"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/trump-communities-that-oppose-data-centers-will-be-backwards-and-poor", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/trump-communities-that-oppose-data-centers-will-be-backwards-and-poor.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/trump-communities-that-oppose-data-centers-will-be-backwards-and-poor.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/trump-communities-that-oppose-data-centers-will-be-backwards-and-poor.jsonld"}}