Data centers have become widely unpopular among Americans across the political spectrum, according to a new NBC poll, as President Donald Trump argues they would benefit local communities. The findings come as some Republican candidates retreat from earlier support for the projects. The poll also found that 70% of respondents were more worried than excited about artificial intelligence, although 52% said they use AI tools very often or sometimes, up six percentage points from NBC's June 2025 survey. Trump has criticized communities and lawmakers opposing data centers, most recently accusing them of wanting to be "backwards and poor." His administration has pursued policies to ease construction, including plans announced in July to loosen Environmental Protection Agency rules. Trump has said data-center operators, rather than taxpayers, should pay the additional electricity costs created by their projects. The National Republican Senatorial Committee has warned AI companies that data centers could jeopardize Republicans' efforts to retain a Senate seat in Ohio, where Jon Husted's opponent has called him the "face of data centers in Ohio" because of his previous support for the projects as lieutenant governor.