Mothers and Health Groups Challenge Coal for AI Power

In late August 2026, activists aligned with the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement sent a formal letter to President Donald Trump urging a reversal of recent moves to expand coal-fired power for artificial intelligence data centers. The appeal, which was sent on August 21, 2026 and has been signed by nearly 200 people, names figures such as Zen Honeycutt, founder of Moms Across America, and Charles Eisenstein, a former campaign speechwriter. The letter frames the issue as a public health concern and explicitly links coal combustion to air and water contamination that can affect children's development.

MAHA spokespeople argue that although data centers demand large quantities of electricity, the expansion of coal is a step backward for environmental health and community safety; consequently, they propose alternatives such as solar and geothermal energy that could supply the needed power without adding soot or heavy metals to soil and food chains. The activists also referenced a 2025 executive order that sought to encourage coal for data center power, and they say that this policy shift has alarmed parents and health advocates who have long campaigned on chemical exposures.

Moreover, the MAHA movement has engaged on other health-related fights, from pesticides to food policy, so its action on coal reflects a broader pattern of concern about environmental drivers of disease. Nevertheless, the group’s intervention has highlighted tensions between some health-focused activists and parts of the current administration, and it has put pressure on federal officials to consider health metrics alongside energy goals.