Trump loves data centers, voters don’t. Of course he’s doubling down right before the midterms.

Americans don’t agree about much in 2026, but a majority are in lockstep on data centers. According to recent polling, a full 75% oppose having one built anywhere near them, a number within striking distance of the 84% of Americans who oppose cutting Social Security. Because the U.S. economy is now profoundly dependent on artificial intelligence, the growing unpopularity of the data centers that supply it is a big problem. Never fear, however, because Donald Trump and his cronies in Congress and media have a bold new strategy for solving it. They’ve lately started claiming data centers are unpopular only with backwards fools and those who’ve been deviously duped by an elaborate Chinese propaganda operation. It’s a messaging tactic that seems destined to be received as poorly as, well, data centers themselves. With midterm elections two months away, the timing could hardly be worse. How data centers became toxic As recently as January 2025, data centers were considered a widely palatable necessity of our glorious AI future. Those who were against AI altogether were obviously also against data centers, but everyone else generally had less of a fixed opinion. One of Joe Biden’s final…