Fox News reported that Senate candidates are confronting growing voter anger over the electricity costs, water consumption, and sprawling developments associated with artificial intelligence.
asserted
candidates → report → intelligence
One recent Gallup survey found that 70 percent of Americans oppose the construction of new AI data centers in their own communities.
asserted
percent → find → communities
Politicians are paying attention.
asserted
Politicians → pay → attention
Some are calling for moratoriums.
asserted
Some → call → moratoriums
Others are targeting tax incentives or demanding that projects generate their own power.
asserted
projects → target → power
The political temptation is obvious: When voters are worried about higher utility bills and rapid changes in their communities, blaming large technology companies is easier than explaining a complicated energy and infrastructure problem.
asserted
blaming → worry → problem
They should not be dismissed by industry, and they cannot be ignored by elected officials.
asserted
they → dismiss → officials
No family should be forced to subsidize the grid upgrades required by one of the world’s wealthiest companies.
asserted
family → force → companies
Communities deserve honest answers about water use, noise, land, electricity demand, tax incentives, and who will pay for new infrastructure.
asserted
who → deserve → infrastructure
But, legitimate concerns are quickly hardening into something far more dangerous: a political campaign against the physical infrastructure of American artificial intelligence.
asserted
concerns → harden → intelligence
If that happens, we will repeat one of the most damaging patterns in modern American history.
asserted
we → happen → history
For decades, the United States surrendered factories, critical supply chains, mineral production, and industrial capacity to foreign competitors.
asserted
States → surrender → competitors
Communities lost jobs, our national security became dependent on adversaries, and Washington eventually spent billions trying to rebuild industries that should never have left.
asserted
that → lose → industries
We cannot make the same mistake with AI.
asserted
We → make → AI
Artificial intelligence does not exist somewhere in the cloud.
asserted
intelligence → exist → cloud
It requires chips, servers, power plants, transmission lines, cooling systems, construction workers, electricians, pipefitters, engineers, and data centers.
asserted
It → require → chips
China understands this.
asserted
China → understand → this
Beijing is not debating whether it should possess the energy and computing infrastructure necessary to dominate artificial intelligence.
asserted
it → debate → intelligence
It is building.
asserted
It → build → ?
The International Energy Agency projects that data-center electricity consumption will increase substantially in both China and the United States through 2030.
asserted
consumption → project → 2030
If America decides that data centers are too politically difficult to construct, the demand for AI will not disappear.
asserted
demand → decide → AI
The investment, jobs, technical expertise, and strategic advantage will simply move elsewhere.
asserted
investment → move → ?
It would also create a serious political problem for Democrats.
asserted
It → create → Democrats
Data-center construction has become an important source of work for the building trades.
asserted
construction → become → trades
The Associated Press recently reported that data centers account for at least 40 percent of the work hours performed by members of the Columbus-Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council and at least 50 percent for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 26 in the Washington metropolitan area.
asserted
centers → report → area
Those are not theoretical jobs promised years from now.
asserted
Those → promise → ?
Democrats cannot claim to represent organized labor while allowing progressive activists to shut down the projects employing union members.
uncertain
activists → claim → members
Republicans should resist a similar temptation.
asserted
Republicans → resist → temptation
Conservatives have spent years arguing for reshoring, energy dominance, permitting reform, American manufacturing, and competition with China.
asserted
Conservatives → spend → China
Those commitments mean very little if they disappear when building the next American industry becomes locally controversial.
asserted
building → mean → industry
The answer is not to wave every project through without conditions.
asserted
answer → wave → conditions
It is to build responsibly and communicate honestly.
asserted
It → build → ?
Data-center developers should be expected to explain what they are building, how much electricity and water it will require, how they will protect residential ratepayers, and what the surrounding community will receive in return.
asserted
community → expect → return
Utilities and regulators should ensure that large customers pay the costs created by their demand.
asserted
customers → ensure → demand
Projects should pursue closed-loop cooling, on-site generation, long-term power agreements, and other options that reduce pressure on local systems.
asserted
that → pursue → systems
Most importantly, America needs more energy.
asserted
America → need → energy
Data centers are exposing a problem that existed before the AI boom.
asserted
that → expose → boom
Electricity demand from data centers has tripled over the past decade and could double or triple again by 2028.
uncertain
demand → triple → 2028
Electricity demand is rising after years of stagnant generation, premature plant retirements, congested transmission systems, and permitting processes that make major infrastructure nearly impossible to build on time.
asserted
infrastructure → rise → time
Stopping data centers will not modernize the grid.
asserted
Stopping → stop → grid
…and 10 more, not listed.
The Aporia
