Donald Trump’s White House has deepened ties with tech billionaires over the past year, fast-tracking permits for massive data center projects and greenlighting sales of advanced AI chips to China. The moves come as the administration clamps down on state efforts to regulate AI tools like chatbots.

Advisers drawn straight from Silicon Valley, under the leadership of AI czar David Sacks, have lobbied Republican legislatures hard. Sacks, a venture capitalist with deep industry connections, urged states including Texas and Ohio to shelve proposed AI safety bills. His team has dismissed warnings about job losses from automation and the environmental toll of energy-hungry data centers.

Trump himself frames U.S. AI supremacy as a core national security priority. In speeches across the Midwest, he touted plans to outpace China in artificial intelligence, calling it essential for military and economic strength. Yet that stance has fractured his base.

In MAGA strongholds, the backlash brews. Truck drivers in rural Pennsylvania rallied last month against AI systems ready to automate freight hauling. “Trump promised to protect jobs, not hand them to robots,” said Mike Harlan, a 52-year-old union organizer from Scranton. Similar protests erupted in Georgia factories, where workers fear chatbots and algorithms will gut manufacturing roles.

State lawmakers feel the heat too. Texas Rep. Greg Abbott, a Trump ally, faces primary challenges after his committee killed an AI oversight bill in May. Critics, including the conservative group America First Workers, blasted the decision as a sellout to Big Tech. “David Sacks isn’t from Texas—he’s from the Valley,” one flyer read, circulated at a Dallas town hall.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis waded in during a Tampa speech on June 15. He called for federal limits on AI’s spread, citing risks to small businesses. DeSantis, eyeing a 2028 presidential run, positioned himself against what he termed Trump’s “tech overlord agenda.” Polls in battleground states show Trump’s approval dipping among non-college whites, a key MAGA demographic, by 8 points since January, according to a June Rasmussen survey.

The rift exposes tensions in Trump’s coalition. Silicon Valley donors poured $150 million into his 2024 campaign, per Federal Election Commission filings. Figures like Elon Musk and Peter Thiel now hold sway in policy circles. Sacks, appointed AI tsar in March, coordinates with the Commerce Department to ease data center builds in Arizona and Nevada—projects that could guzzle power equivalent to 1 million homes each, officials said.

Environmental groups pile on. The Sierra Club sued last week over a Virginia data center approved under expedited federal rules, alleging violations of the Clean Water Act. In response, White House spokespeople reiterated Trump’s line: AI leadership trumps local concerns. “America can’t afford to fall behind,” Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Friday.

Grassroots MAGA voices aren’t buying it. At a July 4 barbecue in rural Ohio, farmer Tom Reilly told reporters, “Trump fought China on trade. Now he’s shipping them our tech secrets.” Online, #MAGAagainstAI trends on X, with over 250,000 posts since May. Influencers like Charlie Kirk have amplified the discontent, questioning Sacks’ influence.

Trump’s team brushes off the uproar. In a Fox News interview Tuesday, Sacks predicted AI would create 10 million jobs by 2030, citing McKinsey reports. He warned that heavy regulation would cede ground to Beijing. Still, four GOP state senators in swing districts have introduced competing AI restriction measures, defying White House guidance.

As midterms loom, the AI divide tests Trump’s grip on his movement. Rural counties in Wisconsin and Michigan, once reliably red, report surging independent registrations. Political analysts watch closely. “This could bleed into 2026 races,” said University of Virginia professor Larry Sabato.