MAHA warns Trump against coal-powered AI data centers

Prominent figures in the Make America Healthy Again movement are telling President Trump that "data centers should not become the justification for burning more coal." Why it matters: The appeal, in a joint letter, collides with Trump officials' support for coal to help power AI. It cites coal's public health and environmental toll due to soot pollution, mercury, and byproducts called "coal ash" that contain heavy metals. The big picture: The letter signals an escalation of MAHA engagement on data centers and what's powering them. It urges the administration to convene MAHA leaders, farmers, physicians and others to craft "health-first standards for AI infrastructure." It says there are better energy options, citing solar paired with energy storage, advanced geothermal, and improved energy efficiency. Driving the news: The many signers of the letter include ... Moms Across America founder Zen Honeycutt. Charles Eisenstein, who was a speechwriter and adviser on Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s 2024 presidential campaign. Aimee Villella McBride, executive director of the Global Wellness Forum. David Murphy, founder and CEO of United We Eat. In addition to President Trump, the joint letter is copied to Kennedy, Environmental Protection Agency head Lee Zeldin, Energy Secretary Chris Wright, and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins. State of play: The Trump administration is moving on multiple fronts to boost coal-fired power, often citing AI power demand among the reasons. An April 2025 executive order calls coal "critical" to meeting rising power demand from data centers and other needs. The Energy Department has announced hundreds of millions of dollars in funding to retain and even expand coal-fired power. What they're saying: The rise of data centers and what's fueling them is a new area of interest for Moms Across America and many in the MAHA movement, Honeycutt said, though she cautions she doesn't speak for the whole movement. "MAHA is not just about ... getting pesticides out of our food, or having vaccines be safe. We're about not having toxins impact the health of our families and our communities and farmers," she said in an interview. "This is a an extremely important issue that is emerging in a new way for the MAHA movement," she said. Catch up quick: The letter arrives as data centers face a growing backlash, and politicians from both parties are floating new restrictions on the industry. The bottom line: The U.S. can lead on AI, energy, and security "without asking children to carry more mercury in their bodies, more soot in their lungs, more heavy metals in their soil and food, or more contamination in their water," the letter states.

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