U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) is defending the construction of new data centers in the Yellowhammer State against critics who want them banned.

Several cities across Alabama have been pumping the breaks on new data center projects this year, including Fort Payne, Cullman, Birmingham, Leeds, and Homewood. Just last month, the Cullman City Council voted unanimously to approve a one-year moratorium on data centers, doing so without commentary from council members.

As reported by 1819 News, Tuberville, who is currently running to be Alabama’s next Governor, spoke on the issue during a speech to the Alabama Sheriffs Association in Opelika on Monday.

“Needing more money, needing more availability for your jails, needing more help from Mental Health, needing things that are really going to help you every day to make your job a little easier, and, you know, to get politics out of it,” Tuberville said. “We don’t need it to be political. We need it to be family. We’ve got 67 counties. We’ve got 67 sheriffs, and we need to help every dang one of you, but we need to give you the resources to get that done.”

The senator argued that data centers will be key to growing the state’s economy and bringing in more tax revenue.

“Everybody asks, ‘How do you do that?’ I’ve talked to several groups — I’ve talked to fire chiefs, police chiefs. Here’s how you do it: we’ve got to grow our state, but one of the big things that’s bringing in a lot of tax money across this country is these data centers, and everybody has heard about them, you know, ‘Big Tech’ and all that,” he said. “You can forget about doing away with it because it’s coming. Everybody says, ‘Well, AI is going to do away with jobs.” It’s going to create jobs as well as do away with jobs, but you’ve got to have data centers.”

Some of the issues that have come up during recent city debates about new data centers are water use, noise mitigation, electrical demand and landscaping.

Tuberville believes that some of the criticism is propaganda coming from China.

“I think there’s 27 states that have already said, ‘Oh, we’re not going to build data centers. We’re not going to do that. It makes too much noise. It’s going to ruin the climate.’ Bull crap,” Tuberville said.

“I mean, they’re listening to all this nonsense they see on social media that’s coming from China because China does not want us to grow. The state of Alabama will grow. We’re going to do data centers. It will help you tremendously. The tax money that comes from those things is unbelievable for schools, for law enforcement, for anything that’s done. We’re not the richest state in the country, but I’m telling you we’re fixing to make a big move on it. I like winning championships. I like winning. I do not like losing, and we’re not going to lose. A lot of that comes with being able to grow the state in the way that it needs to be grown to make sure that we’re ahead of the times.”

Yaffee is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays 9-11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on X @Yaffee