President Trump's Claim of Chinese Influence in U.S. Data Center Opposition Exaggerated, Experts Say
President Trump recently suggested that widespread opposition to data center construction in the U.S. is a "China PR thing," implying foreign influence is behind the backlash. This statement was made during an interview with Fox News host Laura Ingraham on September 10. Other political figures, including Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Republican lawmakers, have also attributed the opposition to "foreign source dark money," "foreign psy-ops campaigns," and "foreign-directed propaganda." These claims are based on reports from groups like Power the Future and the Bitcoin Policy Institute, which allege Chinese influence in shaping U.S. discourse on data centers. However, experts and tech companies, including OpenAI and X, have found that while Chinese influence campaigns exist, their reach and impact on the organic, grassroots opposition to data centers are minimal. Darren Linvill, a professor at Clemson University, noted that Chinese state media primarily focuses on promoting its own AI technology, not on...
