{"id":95061,"date":"2026-02-19T16:01:23","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T19:01:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tech.einnews.com\/article\/893805472"},"modified":"2026-02-19T16:01:23","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T19:01:23","slug":"these-democratic-governors-have-joined-trump-in-embracing-big-tech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/2026\/02\/19\/these-democratic-governors-have-joined-trump-in-embracing-big-tech\/","title":{"rendered":"These Democratic Governors Have Joined Trump in Embracing Big Tech"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n
\n

Climate and Energy<\/a>Clean Water<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
RELATED CONTENT<\/h6>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
Three high-profile Democratic governors have embraced costly techno-fixes, deregulation, and pro-corporate policies amid affordability and climate crises.<\/div>\n
Editor\u2019s Note:<\/strong> A version of this article originally appeared on the website of Food & Water Action (our affiliated organization) at an earlier date.<\/h6>\n

Donald Trump\u2019s deregulatory pro-corporate agenda<\/a> has made clear the dangers of stripping away our health and environmental protections. But rather than stand up for people and the environment, several Democratic governors are making similar moves. <\/p>\n

These governors, including Gavin Newsom of California, Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, and Kathy Hochul of New York, are buying into industry talking points and embracing corporate polluters in the name of purported progress. <\/p>\n

\n
\n
RELATED CONTENT<\/h6>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

They say they\u2019re slashing red tape, but they\u2019re really slashing caution tape and throwing the gates open for more pollution, faster. At the same time, their embrace of expensive techno-fixes and their appeals to corporate giants make clear where their loyalties lie. <\/p>\n

Gavin Newsom\u2019s Techno-Fixes Won\u2019t Save California<\/h4>\n

California Governor Gavin Newsom has long supported failed, expensive techno-fixes to some of the state\u2019s biggest environmental and climate challenges. He\u2019s boosted costly water desalination projects<\/a> and the multi-billion-dollar Delta Tunnel scheme<\/a> to carry water from northern to southern California. <\/p>\n

The Governor would rather waste taxpayer dollars on unnecessary infrastructure than tackle the root cause of California\u2019s water scarcity problems<\/a> \u2014 outsized water use by Big Ag operations. <\/p>\n

When it comes to energy, Newsom has also embraced nuclear power<\/a> and Big Oil\u2019s carbon capture and storage<\/a> scam. Make no mistake, support for these technologies is not climate action \u2014 it\u2019s a handout to dangerous and polluting industries. <\/p>\n

Most recently, Newsom has shown a loyal friendship<\/a> to the tech industry as its data centers<\/a> guzzle our water, imperil our climate, and spike our energy bills. Newsom has vetoed several bills aiming to regulate the potential harms of Big Tech\u2019s artificial intelligence<\/a> technology. <\/p>\n

He seems to have bent the knee to tech companies\u2019 millions of lobbying dollars<\/a> and their threats to take their business out of California. And nothing illuminates Newsom\u2019s loyalties as brightly as his reaction to a new proposed tax on billionaires \u2014 vehement opposition<\/a>. <\/p>\n

This track record shows a governor more loyal to Big Tech billionaires and flashy technologies than his constituents. Newsom has embraced the misguided \u201cAbundance agenda<\/a>\u201d that promised more of everything through deregulation. But his policy decisions spell abundance for the ultrawealthy more than for everyday Californians.<\/p>\n

\n
\n

Food & Water Watch shares the informaiton you need to defend our food, water, and climate from corporate greed! Subscribe to get your latest updates in your inbox.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Josh Shapiro\u2019s Data Centers Promise More Pollution for Pennsylvania<\/h4>\n

Like Newsom, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro has embraced the abundance agenda for his state. Not long ago, as former Attorney General, Shapiro demanded accountability and justice<\/a> after frackers poisoned Pennsylvanians. As governor, he\u2019s taken a different tune, embracing an \u201dAll of the Above\u201d energy strategy and \u201cLightning Plan\u201d<\/a> to deregulate and fast-track energy projects. <\/p>\n

This means fewer guardrails to protect health and the environment, as well as less public input and transparency. Moreover, in a state where fracking giants rule, an \u201cAll of the Above\u201d energy strategy will mean more dangerous pollution<\/a> in the Commonwealth.<\/p>\n

The Governor has also embraced the data center boom sweeping the country. Pennsylvania is the third-biggest state<\/a> for proposed data center energy demand. In his recent budget address, Shapiro even touted a $20 billion Amazon investment<\/a> to build data centers in the state.<\/p>\n

The data center industry markets itself<\/a> as a boon to communities, from jobs to tax revenue. But in fact, they\u2019re drains<\/a> \u2014 across the country, states have offered lucrative tax breaks to Big Tech, and data center job projections are wildly overinflated. Moreover, data centers are already making energy more expensive<\/a> for people across the country, including in Pennsylvania. <\/p>\n

While making gestures at Pennsylvanians\u2019 energy and water concerns, Shapiro seems to be falling for Big Tech\u2019s talking points<\/a> hook, line, and sinker. For example, in January, he began pushing a part of his Lightning Plan: a bill that includes a model data center ordinance<\/a> that would speed data center development and curb local efforts to stop them.<\/p>\n

Across the state, people have gathered in force to stop data center proposals, and this grassroots opposition grows every day. Which raises the question \u2014 is Shapiro more interested in rich investors and Tech oligarchs than the well-being of Pennsylvanians?<\/p>\n

Kathy Hochul\u2019s Noxious Ploy for Nuclear in New York<\/h4>\n

New York Governor Kathy Hochul has made risky nuclear power<\/a> a central part of her energy policy. While her administration has framed this as necessary to meet the state\u2019s climate goals, it will only entrench a costly, dangerous energy source at the expense of cheaper, safer solar and wind. <\/p>\n

Most egregiously, Hochul has directed the New York Power Authority to build five gigawatts of nuclear power capacity in New York<\/a> \u2014 the equivalent of five new large-scale nuclear reactors. <\/p>\n

New Yorkers have already been burned by nuclear\u2019s sky-high costs. In 2016, they received the bill for an $8 billion bailout<\/a> for three aging nuclear plants. And in January of 2026, Hochul herself approved a $33 billion bailout<\/a> to keep aging nuclear plants running, which New Yorkers will pay for. Expanding this dangerous and expensive industry further is unconscionable.<\/p>\n

This push for nuclear power goes hand-in-hand with the Governor\u2019s moves to attract the energy-hungry tech industry. Hochul is working to make New York a \u201cglobal hub for semiconductor research and manufacturing<\/a>,\u201d including with more than  $10 billion-worth<\/a> of incentives<\/a>. (The AI and data center boom are driving semiconductor demand to new heights<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

At the same time, Hochul has done little to assuage New Yorkers\u2019 fears about data centers. She recently announced a vague proposal<\/a> to make New York data centers \u201cpay their fair share\u201d for their outsized electricity use, which is already raising power bills nationwide. <\/p>\n

This is wholly inadequate. More than 50 New York organizations agree \u2014 we need nothing less than a full stop to new data centers<\/a> until we have proper protections for our communities, environment, and health. Anything less is a handout to the tech industry.<\/p>\n

We Need Leaders Who Fight for Us, Not Corporations<\/h4>\n

At this critical moment for our politics and our planet, we need strong leadership more than ever. We need leaders who won\u2019t fall for corporate talking points or sacrifice our communities for flashy deals or techno-fixes. <\/p>\n

Democratic leaders like Newsom, Shapiro, and Hochul have a major opportunity here. They can change course, stand up for their constituents, and embrace policies that tackle the real root of our country\u2019s economic, environmental, and political problems: unrestrained corporate greed. <\/p>\n

\n
\n
Enjoyed this article?<\/h6>\n

Sign up<\/a> for updates.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

BACK
TO TOP<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n

<\/a><\/strong> <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

… harms of Big Tech<\/span>\u00e2\u0080\u0099s artificial intelligence technology<\/span>.\u00c2\u00a0 He seems to … have bent the knee to tech<\/span> … governor more loyal to Big Tech<\/span> billionaires and flashy technologies … in rich investors and Tech<\/span> oligarchs than the well- …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-95061","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","wpcat-1-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95061","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=95061"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95061\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=95061"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=95061"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=95061"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}