We Took AOC To A Deep Red Data Center Town. Can She Win Residents Over? More Perfect Union May 18, 2026 Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: “Well, one of the reasons why I certainly wanted to come out here is because when you’re stuck in Washington and these issues come up, you get a bunch of lobbyists that come down and they tell you that it’s all fake. You know, they tell you that the water issues are actually not that serious and they say, you know, all this stuff is kind of like an urban legend and it’s really not that bad. Obviously, you guys don’t have a lobbyist in Washington.”

I’ve been seeing data center opposition being smeared as people who are (they’re not but this is the assertion) that they’re conspiracy theorists claiming people are getting Lyme Disease from data centers (again, this is not true). Nonsense like that. But there’s a bunch of people trying to smear people as anti-technology or whatever the case may be, and that really doesn’t matter how you smear people because when people see the evidence that homes are being ruined completely by data centers, and so obviously people don’t want that to happen to them too.

The whole thing is absurd. Of course nobody wants this. And it’s entirely reasonable to prioritize drinking water and indoor plumbing over the internet.

Chris Kelly Opinion: Data centers are a seller’s nightmare - By Chris Kelly | The Times-Tribune PUBLISHED: May 24, 2026 at 5:00 AM EDT As I watched representatives of Essential Energy LLC flounder on the stage of the Valley View High School auditorium on Thursday night, I was struck by the absurdity of Archbald Borough Council’s second “conditional use” hearing for a project an overwhelming majority of Archbald residents don’t want under any conditions.

Conflicts of interest around data center development in Pennsylvania:

‘What Oligarchy Looks Like’: AI Giants Pledge to Pump $100 Million Into 2026 Midterms The goal of the PAC is to elect a Congress that will prohibit individual states from passing their own AI regulations. Brad Reed Feb 11, 2026 CNN noted that Leading the Future’s planned flood of cash is coming at a time when AI has been drawing skepticism from factions within both the Republican and Democratic parties. Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, for instance, has thrown his support behind a “Citizen Bill of Rights for AI,” which would provide privacy protections for end users and place restrictions on the construction of AI data centers. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), meanwhile, has called for a full moratorium on the construction of new AI data centers. Leading the Future also appears to understand that the AI industry’s reputation is becoming toxic for voters.

Here in Northeastern Pennsylvania, hearings on data centers are now using larger and larger venues because of unusually large turnouts for these public meetings. 

Archbald, Dickson City hearings this week focus on data centers By Frank Lesnefsky | The Times-Tribune PUBLISHED: February 9, 2026 at 5:44 PM EST | UPDATED: February 10, 2026 at 2:59 PM EST Hearings use larger venues. Both boroughs opted for larger venues after residents packed previous meetings. The Valley View High School auditorium has become the new backdrop for data center hearings in Archbald following a Nov. 24 meeting when council amended Archbald’s zoning to address data centers. Residents filled the Borough Building’s council chambers that night, sitting on the floor and spilling out into the hallway. Council held a previous hearing and subsequent special meeting in the basement of the St. Thomas Aquinas Church basement.

My letter to reps: 

I heard big tech tycoon lobbyists are trying to buy the midterm elections to force all the politicians to hype AI and force slop and data centers down our throats. I think they're gonna get a rude awakening because nobody wants this garbage, certainly not in our neighborhoods, and any politicians, no matter the party, are gonna feel the hurt on the ballots if they don't stand on the side of the humans.