CHEYENNE — Where data center supporters in Wyoming’s capital city see growth and prosperity, former GOP gubernatorial candidate Taylor Haynes sees a series of “digital prisons” being built.
A small group of a few dozen people rallied at the state Capitol on Saturday, continuing where opponents left off Monday night after a hearing that lasted more than five hours about the largest annexation in the city’s history — nearly 3,500 acres to expand a Microsoft data center project south of Cheyenne.
The council approved the annexation by a 6-3 vote.
That prompted opponents to quickly launch a petition drive for a public referendum aimed at overturning the council’s annexation decision, plus the rally.
While speaking out against data centers, some had to strain to hear Haynes and other rally-goers when the microphone went dead.
The Cheyenne protest, the only one in Wyoming, was part of a national data center protest by the group Humans First, which held more than 50 rallies in 22 states that either have data centers or are in the planning of construction phase.
Haynes, a conservative activist who is also fighting the Chokecherry and Sierra Madre Wind Energy Project in southern Wyoming, said he also finds it necessary to oppose data centers throughout Wyoming.
He told the group that he knew he was addressing “the people who haven’t taken the Kool-Aid,” but he wants to get more people to join the fight against data centers.
AI Is Big Brother
Haynes questioned why the United States must be the cryptocurrency capital of the world in addition to being the artificial intelligence leader.
“When you take AI, everything about Taylor Haynes, what time he gets up, what time he goes to bed, what he does on the ranch, what he thinks almost, [is known],” he said. "And now he’s got his assets tokenized in crypto. That’s where this is going.”
At this point either the rally’s sound system, which produced loud echoes at the beginning of the event, went kaput or organizers pulled the plug, because the microphone went dead.
It didn’t become a silent protest, but Haynes, who has a softer voice than most of the other speakers, was repeatedly drowned out by passing motorists and honking horns.
Haynes said that liberal and conservative “talking heads” on financial TV networks “are all touting these data centers” because of what he sees as an obvious link between them and cryptocurrency.
“We’ve got to have AI in every aspect of our life, and ‘we’ve gotta beat China! Oh God, we’ve gotta beat China,’” Haynes said. “As a rancher, I’ve seen this a lot in my pasture. We call it bullshit.”
‘A Wolf Is Coming'
While much of the national and local focus has been on the massive amounts of water and electricity needed to run data centers, and how they could leave aquifers dry and drive up electric bills, Haynes focused on how the need for artificial intelligence has allegedly taken away Americans’ freedom.
“Anytime you scream ‘wolf' and you scream ‘wolf' and you scream ‘wolf,' there actually is a wolf coming,” Haynes said. “But he’s already here. It’s data centers. It's our government.”
Haynes ran for governor in the Republican primary in 2014, where he finished second to Gov. Matt Mead, 55% to 32%. In 2018, he faced a field crowded with gubernatorial conservative candidates — except for the winner, Mead — Haynes finished fifth.
Humans First, which organized the national data center protest, is a conservative nonprofit advocacy group. Its chair, Amy Kremer, is a former Tea Party movement leader.
And Saturday’s event had a certain Tea Party feel to it.
In addition to flags, "No Data Center" signs and MAGA hats, several of the speakers claimed that since more than three-fourths of Wyoming voters are Republicans and only 11% “liberal Democrats,” conservatives should be able to pass conservative laws.
While most of the crowd was conservative, data centers divide political ranks in most areas. Many of their supporters in both major political parties believe that the facilities are essential to keeping the U.S. competitive in the global AI race, while bringing investment and jobs to communities.
Also, That Microsoft Annexation
While Haynes and several candidates for Cheyenne City Council and Laramie County Commissioners spoke to a crowd of about 50 on the southeast corner of the Capitol grounds, Katherine McAdams was circulating petitions to put the city’s annexation issue to a public referendum and signing up volunteers.
McAdams said to force a vote will require the signatures of 2,700 legally registered Cheyenne voters. Since it would be to overturn the Microsoft annexation, other Laramie County voters’ signatures would not count.
The petition requirement is 10% of the total who voted in the 2024 city election, but McAdams, a retired teacher, said that, “We think we can get 3,000, 4,000 to 5,000.
“I’m hoping that people will have a fair vote,” she said. “The council says there are a lot of people out there who want the data centers; maybe they do, maybe they don’t. But we’ll see if the people want to annex 3,468 acres [for data centers].”
In May, opponents petitioned for a 12-month moratorium on planning or building new data centers. The moratorium failed with only one councilman supporting it.
According to Cheyenne LEADS, the city’s economic development agency, there are 10 operational data centers in Cheyenne and Laramie County, five under construction, and nine in various phases of planning.
But City Councilman Larry Wolfe, who voted against the Microsoft annexation, said at various times the city has had interest from about 70 potential data centers of various sizes.
Kerry Drake can be reached at Kerry@CowboyStateDaily.com
