US must secure victory in AI race with China, Burgum says
U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum reacts to President Donald Trump touting data center jobs and tax revenue. He warns that the U.S. must win the artificial intelligence race against China to secure global economic leadership. The discussion follows a recent poll showing voters remain divided over the expansion of local data centers.
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Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., on Saturday dismissed “AI doomsdaying,” warning that China benefits from “overreaction” by the United States as the two countries compete for dominance in artificial intelligence.
Fetterman shared an article on X highlighting a Bloomberg analysis examining what it described as the narrowing U.S. lead over China in the AI race and the faster pace at which Chinese companies are deploying advanced models.
The Pennsylvania Democrat reacted to the report by arguing that advancements in AI are critical to national security.
“AI supremacy and energy dominance underpins our national security,” Fetterman wrote.
CHINA IS BUILDING AN AI WAR MACHINE. WASHINGTON MUST WAKE UP BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., rejected “AI doomsdaying” and warned that China benefits when the U.S. overreacts to concerns surrounding artificial intelligence. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Fetterman added that pulling back on the emerging technology would only benefit America’s competitors.
“China continues to fuel and benefit from our overreaction,” he wrote. “I reject the political pandering and hyperbole over data centers or AI doomsdaying.”
Saturday’s post was Fetterman’s latest call for the U.S. to aggressively pursue AI development.
SEN BERNIE SANDERS: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IS COMING FOR THE WORKING CLASS. WE MUST FIGHT BACK
U.S. Sen Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) hold a press conference to announce the Artificial Intelligence Data Center Moratorium Act at the US Capitol on March 25, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)
Fetterman’s stance puts the Pennsylvania Democrat largely in step with Trump on the need to accelerate AI development and expand the nation’s data center infrastructure.
Earlier this month, Fetterman reacted to an article reporting that Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., was eyeing a potential pause on AI development, arguing such a move would be welcomed by China.
“America must lead in the development of AI, otherwise we live under China’s rules,” Fetterman wrote. “That must not happen.”
Fetterman has also championed the development of data centers. In March, he pushed back against the prospect of imposing a moratorium on new AI data centers in the U.S., blasting the proposal as “China First.”
His comments came after President Donald Trump earlier this week encouraged governors and local officials to welcome the construction of AI data centers.
AMERICA NEEDS THOUSANDS OF BLUE-COLLAR WORKERS TO MANUFACTURE OUR AI FUTURE
President Donald Trump urged governors and local officials to welcome AI data centers, pointing to the jobs and tax revenue generated by the facilities. (Eric Lee/Getty Images)
“The construction jobs are enormous. We’re building the biggest plants anywhere in the world. And I can say, if I were the mayor of a town or the governor of a state, and I had a chance to get a big plant in an AI plant or a data center, I would absolutely want it because the jobs are enormous, and the money paid, the taxes paid are just enormous,” Trump said at the White House on Wednesday.
The president also said the AI industry needs “a little public relations help” as Americans have expressed concerns about data centers being built in their communities.
A Gallup poll from May found a majority of Americans opposed the construction of new data centers near where they live.
Those surveyed who opposed the facilities cited concerns including their electricity and water consumption and potential environmental impact.
THE WAR ON DATA CENTERS JEOPARDIZES OUR ECONOMY AND NATIONAL SECURITY
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., argued that American dominance in artificial intelligence and energy is critical to U.S. national security. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Trump signed an executive order in July aimed at expediting the permitting process for data centers.
Regarding the regulation of AI, Trump suggested the industry “may be bigger than the internet.”
“We’re leading by a lot with AI. We want to keep it that way. We want to regulate, but we want to have regulation where they can continue to lead, not regulation that’s going to stifle a very important industry,” Trump said.
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Digital’s Alex Nitzberg and James Cirrone contributed to this report.
