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President Donald Trump’s high-tech moon shot could hit a Texas-sized speed bump. And it comes from his own party.
Trump’s AI initiative, called “Stargate,” aims to build 20 super-powerful data centers across the country. The project, backed by heavyweights such as Openai, Oracle, Softbank and UAE-funded MGX, represents a $500 billion bet on the future where Texas was chosen as Ground Zero in the first 10 centers.
But Senate Bill 6, the new Texas bill, could slow or derail its momentum.
The law adds six months of regulatory reviews in addition to the existing 6-18-month timeline, and also requires new fees and mandatory backup generators, doubles approval times and inflated costs.
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\President Donald Trump spoke at the Roosevelt Room at the White House, with the son of SoftBank CEO Masayoshi, Oracle co-founder, CTO, executive chairman Larry Ellison, and Open IC CEO Sam Altman looking at it on January 21, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
And while the law is being pitched as a safeguard against another winter storm Uristyle blackout, Trump’s allies have warned that it could drive generational opportunities with torpedoes.
“This bill will be a serious obstacle to the president’s vision,” said Vance Ginn, president of Ginn Economic Consulting and former chief economist of the White House Office of Management and Budget during Trump’s first term in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital.
“It’s a false effort rooted in fear. It’s a fear of the rarity of energy, the fear of AI, the fear of the future.”
According to Ginn, the bill’s heavy requirements, such as a $100,000 grid connection fee and the so-called “kill switches” that allow Texas’ Electricity Council to cut electricity into data centers, could push these billion-dollar projects completely out.
“These companies aren’t just using energy,” Jin said. “A lot of them actually bring the extra power back into the grid. So instead of hurting Texas, they help stabilize it.”
Stargate has already broken the ground with Abilene, but the next 10 data centers are still in the air. If Texas becomes too expensive or complicated, experts warn that even rival states like Wyoming and Tennessee Court businesses without Texas infrastructure may never happen in the back half of the project.
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“The Texas Legislature is not working with President Trump and Rockstep to build AI infrastructure and throw any barriers,” Zinn added. “The AI revolution is here. If Texas shakes this up, it will be behind.”
Texas lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, sponsoring the bill, argues the law does not hurt Trump’s agenda. “Senate Bill 6 guarantees that President Trump’s Stargate plan will actually succeed,” Patrick said in a statement. “We are lockstepping with the President on our goal of making America number one and dominating China with AI, data centers and cryptocurrency.”
Openai CEO Sam Altman (R), accompanied by President Donald Trump, will speak at a press conference at the Roosevelt Room at the White House on January 21, 2025 (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Despite Trump’s support for Patrick’s reelection, economists who formed Trump’s alliance say the state is playing a dangerous game.
“We’re already seeing this sign,” Jing warned. “Microsoft has pulled the project back. Investors are nervous. Meanwhile, China is moving forward.”
A Chinese startup called Deepseek has created headlines for deploying cutting-edge AI models in record time, sparking fresh anxiety about America’s position in the global AI arm race.
Trump announced his investment in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and asked questions about a variety of topics. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
“This isn’t just innovation,” Jin said. “This is national security. If we’re six months behind China, we’ll never catch up.”
Trump backed up his AI push with a hard policy announced last week, including a 10% comprehensive tariff on all imports and a sudden 125% tariff on Chinese products. However, these tariffs can also raise the prices of major data center components, from steel to electrical transformers.
Despite the trade-offs, the Trump administration sees Stargate as the basis for 21st century American leadership in everything from education to healthcare.
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“Texas should take the lead,” Zinn said. “We cannot prevent fear of the unknown from hindering us.”
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