After the congressional elections: Has the era of unregulated data centres in the US ended?
On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump wrote on X a post reminding that he has veto power. The reason is that Democrats emerged from the midterm elections controlling Congress, and the AI and data-center sector now faces legislators who are no longer their allies. That is what The National reports in a piece published on November 4 and updated on the 5th.
What actually changed?Nothing in the laws so far. The report mentions no active ban on data centres and merely notes a federal freeze on their construction, which Michael Strobaek of Lombard Odier expects would face an immediate veto. What has changed is the balance of power. In January Democrats will take over the chairmanship of the congressional committees dealing with cybersecurity, technology, innovation, space and trade, and the Senate will become more able to block Trump’s appointments, especially those linked to AI and data centres.
Where does the voter press?The report says polls show voters are frustrated with AI because of its environmental impact and cost, and because politics is focused on it rather than on inflation, rising energy prices and the war in Iran. From this comes Mark MacCarthy of Georgetown University’s expectation that the new Congress will protect bill-payers from data-center costs, and that a consumer-protection bill on these costs, now stalled in the Senate as a standalone measure, will return. According to Strobaek, Democrats may reduce tax incentives, shift a larger share of electricity costs onto developers, and introduce early safety rules.
Why does no one wait for a swift overthrow?Charu Chanana of Saxo Bank estimates the wait will be two years of political confrontation and stalemate, not an immediate rollback of current policies. Timothy Kneeland of Nazarith University says the “roses and wine” era that AI and data centres enjoyed without regulation is over, and Republicans may help bypass a presidential veto, while courts have halted executive orders that conflict with the law. David Meier of Julius Baer believes tighter regulation would weigh down capital spending and financial flows, a major source of support for the dollar this year.
And what about chip companies?According to CNBC citing Lisa Su of AMD, the election does not change its view of AI, and the company will not lower its data-center sales forecasts, as demand for compute power remains “strong”. In contrast, Jensen Huang of Nvidia has not issued a public comment on the shifting power balance, the report says.
What is our region’s relevance?The report is dated Washington and Abu Dhabi, but it does not link the election results to any Gulf project, nor does it mention any company or state in the region. Our addition here is not a quoted fact. Gulf states are building part of their AI infrastructure with major US firms, and those firms need a stable political climate in their host country to continue spending. If Congress tightens oversight of data-center costs in the US, that could alter companies’ calculations about where and under what conditions to build. Then digital sovereignty shifts from a slogan to a practical question: who controls compute power when policies change in Washington? That remains an open question, not news.
The honest takeaway:The law has not changed, no data centre has been banned, and the president retains veto power. What will become clear after January is which committee will open the file on energy, incentives and safety first. Until then, do not treat AI as merely a technical issue, as it has become an electoral issue in the world’s largest economy.