Nearly 200 activists in Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s "Make America Healthy Again" movement are criticizing President Donald Trump's promotion of coal to fuel the rise of artificial intelligence data centers, according to a letter sent Friday.

The letter, signed by at least two former staffers from Kennedy's 2024 presidential campaign, marks the first major MAHA movement mobilization over fossil fuels and is the latest in a series of rifts between the diverse group of activists and the Trump administration on environmental policy.

The letter to Trump, Kennedy, and various other Cabinet officials, first obtained by Reporters, expresses regret over a 2025 executive order that aimed to boost coal for powering data centers despite pollution concerns, and asks the administration to consider renewable options, including solar and geothermal energy.

“We recognize the pivotal role of American leadership in artificial intelligence, national security, innovation, and economic growth,” the letter states.

“Yet this leadership must not come at the expense of imposing a more detrimental burden on American children.”

In response, White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers noted that greenhouse gas emissions fell to a 30-year low during Trump’s first term and asserted that Trump “was given a mandate to roll back the radical climate policies that are burning a hole through taxpayers’ wallets.”

The agencies that received the letter refrained from immediate commentary in response to inquiries.

Prominent MAHA figures behind the letter include Zen Honeycutt, a former Kennedy campaign staffer and founder of the advocacy group Moms Across America, and Charles Eisenstein, a former speechwriter on Kennedy’s campaign.

Honeycutt stated that she had requested the Kennedy-aligned political action committee MAHA Action to endorse the letter, yet received no response.

While this may not reflect the views of all MAHA activists, the recent criticism of one of the administration's key policies, coming less than three months before November's midterm elections, could create another hurdle for Republicans as they try to appeal to this voting group in important races.

In his capacity as health secretary, Kennedy has implemented a series of policy shifts aligned with the MAHA movement, notably seeking to curtail recommendations for childhood vaccines—a key objective for certain activists.

Additionally, he has pursued the elimination of artificial dyes from food products and urged Americans to adopt nutritious diets devoid of ultraprocessed items.

Yet many in the MAHA movement, whom Trump credits with helping him regain the presidency two years ago, say they have grown frustrated with the administration's endorsement of pesticides like glyphosate and its deregulatory environmental agenda.

Some have stated they plan to vote based on issues rather than party affiliation this autumn, raising the political stakes of their increasingly public disagreements with the Republican administration.

As president, Trump has enthusiastically backed what he calls "big, beautiful coal" despite criticism from environmentalists about the greenhouse gases and toxic chemicals that coal-fired power plants release.

His administration has moved to reverse stricter Biden-era regulations on greenhouse gas emissions, which, beyond their climate effects, can harm children's brain development and increase heart attack rates in adults.

He has likewise been a prominent proponent of data centers — the infrastructure underpinning artificial intelligence and cloud computing — portraying them as indispensable to prevailing in the technological contest with China.

"If I were the mayor of a town or the governor of a state, and I had the chance to bring in a major facility—an AI plant or a data center—I would absolutely want it, because the jobs are huge and the tax revenues are enormous," Trump said this week.

Data centers have emerged as a contentious political issue in this year's electoral campaigns.

Voters across the ideological spectrum have voiced criticism over their role in escalating electricity costs, depleting water resources, and generating detrimental levels of air and noise pollution.

Friday’s letter urges the administration to mandate transparent scrutiny of decisions regarding data center siting and power procurement, while upholding the existing environmental review protocols embedded in the permitting process.

Honeycutt stated that following Trump's executive order last year, she investigated the impact of coal ash on communities and was alarmed by her findings.

She also expressed concerns about other facets of data centers, including their land use and their repercussions for nearby residents.

"The expansion of data centers has had an overwhelmingly negative impact on our communities, and many within the MAHA movement are deeply disappointed by this," she said.

"We vote for those who prioritize health and safety."