President Trump is starting to sound an awful lot like Graham Platner.

Remember the progressive Democrat who dropped out of Maine’s U.S. Senate race against Susan Collins back in July?

Platner championed restrictions on new data center construction and proposed a national electricity-rate freeze to protect consumers.

Now, with just 13 days until the midterm elections, Trump has found some common ground with Platner.

In a Truth Social post this morning, Trump declared that companies building massive new data centers must generate their own electricity. Any surplus power should go back to the surrounding community or electrical grid.

He went a step further. Companies looking to win over skeptical communities should consider paying local residents a financial “dividend.”

In other words, if Big Tech wants to build a multibillion-dollar AI facility in your backyard, it had better bring its own power supply. And perhaps a little something for the neighbors.

Trump’s announcement comes as Americans contend with soaring electricity bills.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, residential electricity prices have risen roughly 46% since early 2020.

Now Washington wants the companies driving that demand to shoulder more of the costs.

Your Rundown for Wednesday, October 21, 2026...

Cash Flow or Lights Out

Data centers accounted for approximately 4.4% of U.S. electricity consumption in 2023, according to the Department of Energy. That share could climb to as much as 12% by 2028.

The International Energy Agency estimates that data centers will account for about half of all U.S. electricity demand growth through 2030.

For years, electricity consumption in the United States barely budged. Utilities had little reason to build massive amounts of additional generating capacity.

AI has changed that equation.

Data centers consume enormous amounts of electricity around the clock. They also require expensive cooling systems, transmission infrastructure, transformers and backup generators.

Now technology companies are racing to secure power supplies, sometimes competing with households and businesses for access to the same electrical grid.

The fight now is over who pays for the additional electricity and infrastructure.

In March, the White House introduced its Ratepayer Protection Pledge, calling on major technology companies to build, bring or buy the electricity needed to operate their facilities. The pledge also calls for companies to cover infrastructure upgrades rather than passing those costs to ordinary customers.

Trump’s latest announcement goes further, suggesting new data centers must generate their own electricity. But his social media declaration isn’t a binding nationwide requirement, and the administration hasn’t explained how it would enforce one.

Technology giants like Microsoft, Amazon, Google and Meta have the balance sheets to build power plants, sign long-term electricity contracts and absorb additional infrastructure costs.

But the AI boom also includes specialized data center operators, cloud computing companies and privately financed ventures borrowing heavily to construct facilities whose future profitability remains uncertain.

These companies already face huge bills for advanced chips, servers, land and construction.

Add dedicated power generation, transmission upgrades and potentially payments to surrounding communities, and the economics become more demanding.

Every additional dollar spent on infrastructure puts more pressure on companies to generate enough revenue to justify the investment.

Jim Rickards has warned that the AI boom has all the makings of a financial bubble. The technology may be revolutionary, but that doesn’t guarantee an adequate return for investors.

Companies borrowing heavily against revenue they expect to earn years from now face particular risks.

Unlike software, a power plant can’t be created with a few lines of code. Construction takes time, equipment is expensive and financing costs matter.

Requiring data centers to cover their own energy costs could protect households from subsidizing Big Tech’s expansion. Additional generation could also strengthen local electricity supplies.

But those benefits won’t materialize overnight.

My view: AI doesn’t have an electricity problem that clever software can solve. It has an infrastructure problem that requires enormous amounts of capital.

Companies capable of funding that infrastructure from their own cash flow have a substantial advantage over competitors dependent on borrowed money.

Trump hasn’t pulled the plug on America’s AI boom. But he’s put investors on notice. The technology may be revolutionary. That doesn’t mean every company building it will make money.

Market Rundown for Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026

S&P 500 futures are up 0.25% to 7,775.

Oil is up 0.50% to $98.30 for a barrel of WTI.

Gold is up 0.20% to $4,151.80 per ounce.

And Bitcoin’s up 1.80% to $83,430.