Trump says communities that don’t build data centers will be ‘backwards and poor’

President Donald Trump has criticized the growing anti-data center sentiment, warning that communities refusing to build these facilities will become backwards and poor. This stance aligns with his administration's aggressive strategy to establish the U.S. as the global leader in artificial intelligence. Despite these efforts, a 2026 Gallup survey indicates that a majority of Americans oppose the construction of data centers in their local areas, creating a clash between federal AI goals and local voter concerns.