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Kentucky Farmer Turns Down Millions From Data Center Company; America Votes. Aired 11-11:30a ET

Aired August 19, 2026 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: Happening now: Building momentum? Another round of primary nail-biters and fresh insight about Democrats' future and President Trump's influence as the midterm elections take shape.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: And betting the farm. A Kentucky family says no thanks to a huge payday after an unknown company tried to buy out their firm to build a data center.

Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer with Pamela Brown, and you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

We begin this hour with a clearer picture of November's midterm elections, after several key primaries in Florida. President Trump's choice for governor, Republican Congressman Byron Donalds, wins his primary race. He will face off against Democrat David Jolly in the fall.

And Democratic Socialists showed off their growing influence with State Representative Angie Nixon's surprise victory in the U.S. Senate primary. Meanwhile, two of the party's House incumbents, Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Jared Moskowitz, fended off any challenges they faced from the left in newly redrawn districts. On the Republican side, embattled Congressman Cory Mills lost his race.

BROWN: And, in Alaska, CNN projects that GOP incumbent Dan S. Sullivan and former Democratic Congresswoman Mary Peltola are among the four candidates to advance to November's high-profile Senate contest. We're still waiting to see if a second Dan Sullivan will also make the ballot.

And in Wyoming's Republican primary for governor, President Trump's pick lost. Voters chose state Senator Eric Barlow over Megan Degenfelder.

Joining us now in THE SITUATION ROOM are CNN political commentator and Democratic strategist Maria Cardona and former aide for the National Republican Senatorial Committee Liam Donovan. All right, so, Maria, let's kick this conversation off by talking

about the upset in the Florida Democratic Senate primary. Democratic Socialist Angie Nixon surprised many by defeating Alex Vindman, who had outraised her, who had the name recognition.

What do you make of this?

MARIA CARDONA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: What I make of this, Pam, and I have been saying this for a while, is that voters don't really care about labels. They care about voting for somebody who's going to fight for them.

And, look, Angie Nixon has been on the Florida scene for quite some time. Vindman is new to the Florida scene in the political world there. Angie Nixon has been in the Florida legislature for six years. She is seen as a community leader. She's a single mom. She was arrested because she was going against DeSantis' crazy redistricting process.

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So voters see her as a fighter, and that's what people want. People want to see candidates that are going to be fierce, that are going to be fearless, that are going to stand up for them. People are hurting. They can't make ends meet.

And so when they look at candidates, they don't look to see what they're labeling themselves as. They don't look to see what others are labeling them as. They are looking to see, is this person going to fight for me? Is this person offering solutions to help me make my family's ends meet? Do they care about my economy?

Do they care that Donald Trump and Republicans have betrayed American voters because they have done nothing that they promised they would do in the '24 elections? And that's what I think that, if it's a Democratic Socialist or progressives that are winning, they win if they're the ones who are seen as that.

Or, in Florida as well, we saw Debbie Wasserman Schultz. There's no more of an establishment candidate than her, and she won because she's seen as a fighter, as well as Moskowitz as well.

BLITZER: Yes, Jared Moskowitz as well won big time as well.

CARDONA: Exactly.

BLITZER: Very impressive.

Liam, President Trump posted on social media just moments ago calling Alex Vindman, who's a retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel, he -- Trump said he was a -- quote -- "real treasonous creep" and celebrated his loss to Angie Nixon.

The president also said Vindman should be prosecuted for his role in the first impeachment process against Trump. What's your view of that? LIAM DONOVAN, FORMER NATIONAL REPUBLICAN SENATORIAL COMMITTEE AIDE:

This is a real callback to the first season of the Trump show. I think this is the kind of thing 10 years in that most candidates have learned to understand that the president has his passions, he has his very personal grudges that he holds.

That is separate and distinct from how to win races. And so Byron Donalds is going to go out -- or -- excuse me -- this is the Senate race. This is going to be Ashley Moody going out there and I think having some fun with the ticket against a DSA candidate on the other side.

I think that's -- the thing that to remember -- and Maria is right, every state has its own story on these things, but the pattern playing out across, it's not all things equal. Yes, Democratic voters are liking an exciting fighter, particularly on the DSA side.

But think about this. Alex Vindman raised $16 million. Angie had less than a million, I think. That's the same thing we saw in Michigan. It's the same thing we saw in Wisconsin. Even where the establishment is eking it out, they're doing it with these insane disparities in resources, which just tells you the degree of difficulty and the passion that's coming on the far left.

And I think that's something that's going to help Republicans come November.

BLITZER: Yes, we used to say money talks in politics, not necessarily in this particular case, given the discrepancies.

BROWN: Yes, there's a lot more to it organizing, galvanizing the grassroots operation.

CARDONA: Yes, exactly.

But let's talk about what Trump decided he needed to talk about in this race. Instead of talking about Ashley Moody and how she would fight for voters, he decided to talk about Vindman, who lost, and what did he talk about? The grudge that he has against him.

This is exactly the problem that Trump and Republicans are facing. He doesn't care about what people are going through. He doesn't care that voters are hurting. He cares about his own feelings. He cares about his own ego, and that's what you're going to see play across the board, because voters are looking at Democrats as the ones who are standing up for them and against Trump.

DONOVAN: I think the way that Republicans have to lean into this, this is sort of a division of labor. You use the president as the kind of counterpuncher.

He might go off-script a little bit fighting his own battles, but he's also going to come and hit Angie Nixon. And so I think that's what Byron Donalds or really anybody has to do is stay in their lane, run a positive race. If you look at what Byron Donalds is talking about, he's showing how he's sort of a leader for the future, young, telegenic African-American Republican with a young family.

He's out there talking about affordability. He's out there talking about the thing that Floridians about, but you can lean on Donald Trump to fire up the base and to hit back against the Democrats.

CARDONA: But, see, he didn't even take a shot at Angie Nixon.

DONOVAN: He will wait for tomorrow. Let him enjoy his day.

(CROSSTALK)

CARDONA: He couldn't help himself, and that I think is the problem. And I think the governor's race is also going to be interesting, because David Jolly is no DSA, right? He's a former Republican, and he can talk about what he has seen across the board in Florida. He is a Floridian, and he knows how to get in there and talk about the issues that voters really care about.

DONOVAN: Maria, don't get me started on David Jolly.

Look, in the most banal...

BROWN: He was once a Republican, now a Democrat.

CARDONA: Exactly.

DONOVAN: He started out as a lobbyist. He took a congressional seat.

BROWN: OK.

DONOVAN: He's a poor man's Charlie Crist, but lost to Charlie Crist, ironically.

But, look, see what you want about the tenets of Democratic Socialism. At least it's an ethos. This guy stands for nothing. I actually think Gwen Graham, his undercard, would be a great nominee and somebody I'd be fearful of. David Jolly is going to get -- the floor will wipe -- be wiped by David Jolly.

BROWN: We will see.

CARDONA: We will see.

BLITZER: You don't like him, obviously.

BROWN: Clearly.

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BROWN: When you take a step back, it's sort of a mixed bag in terms of Trump-endorsed candidates. Some have lost, some have won. And, of course, we know in South Carolina he has endorsed the late Lindsey Graham's sister, Darline Graham.

She had a debate with Ralph Norman in the Senate race. I want to watch some of that, and then I'm going to ask you both about it on the other side.

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GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, MODERATOR: Are Taiwan and the South China Sea national security issues for the United States? And if so, why or how?

SEN. DARLINE GRAHAM (R-SC): I'm just going to be honest here. I'm not -- on national security, that -- I'm not that informed on national security, so -- but I do support the military. My brother was in the Air Force for 33 years. So I will do everything I can to support the military.

My dad was in the Army. I'm not a polished politician up here. I'm -- national security is not my thing, not my area of expertise, but I do support the military.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: That is the sister of Lindsey Graham, who was sort of thrust into this role after her brother died.

And I'm just wondering what your take is, Liam. Do you think voters care, or is this a consequential moment for her?

DONOVAN: We will find out.

I mean, look, she is going up there as somebody who is not a politician. That is her strength. I think, look, it's a moment of candor. She didn't want to look foolish by saying something that wasn't right. I think you might want to abbreviate that one when it's a pass.

But that's going to be -- the choice there is, what is more important to South Carolina voters? Is it somebody that has the trust and faith of Donald Trump, or is it somebody like Ralph Norman who can probably vote with Donald Trump, but is sort of seen as an enemy of the president?

And so that's going to be the test in the run-off here. I don't think it hurts her beyond the fact that everyone understood that she's a political neophyte, and if she came in, it would be because it is the trust that the voters place in Donald Trump.

BLITZER: If she comes in, she's got to learn a lot about national security.

CARDONA: She absolutely is going to have to learn a lot about national security and a lot about answering questions that you don't know the answer to, right?

There could have been a much better way to answer that question without letting people know that you know absolutely nothing about national security. But I think Liam's right. It's going to be, what do people think about and how do they feel about her versus Lindsey Graham?

Maybe there is just a lot of sentimentality there, and they might forgive her for that, but we will see. I think it all depends on whether her opponent is going to take advantage of that. And he can if he wants to.

BLITZER: I'm sure he will.

BROWN: All right. He already is.

CARDONA: Right.

BLITZER: Maria Cardona, thank you. Liam Donovan, thanks to you as well.

BROWN: Yes.

CARDONA: Thank you.

BROWN: Thank you all so much.

We want to get to some breaking news. We were just talking about what's on Trump's mind today. Well, he just spoke about the latest renovation project at the White House.

BLITZER: Let's go live to CNN White House reporter Betsy Klein. She's joining us right now.

Betsy, I understand the president was talking about building a new helipad on the White House grounds. What did he say?

BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, Wolf, President Trump summoned reporters unexpectedly a few moments ago for a tour and unveiled a brand-new construction project we haven't previously reported here at the White House, and that is that he is replacing the asphalt on the White House driveway with a brand-new granite.

The president telling reporters this was always asphalt, which is very basic, not appropriate for a great house, and it's been replaced with this California white granite that he described as a very special stone. He also for the first time addressed the helipad that we have seen.

They started construction on it in June, right after his UFC fight on the White House South Lawn. And a couple of weeks ago, we saw it start to get disassembled, the progress that they had made, over a couple of days. President Trump said that he personally was involved in that, that he was unhappy with the grading and the slope of the helipad as it had been constructed, really speaking to how invested personally the president has been.

And we have reported that the president has spent a lot of time during his second term thinking about his legacy. And these construction projects, the ballroom as well, is really key to all of that. The president has described himself as a great builder, says that this is his expertise. Now, earlier -- excuse me. We have also had some questions about how

much all of this is costing. There's some new reporting from "The Washington Post" that says that the totality of President Trump's White House projects, the Rose Garden, the helipad, presumably also this new driveway, which the president claimed he was in part funding, as well as the ballroom, is going to cost a total of $900 million.

The White House has not yet confirmed that number. But, again, the president has made this a major priority, and it comes just days after his administration is taking that ballroom fight all the way to the Supreme Court. Construction on that project, though, has been progressing very rapidly.

And in the new court filing, the administration said that it's about 65 percent of the way done. There's a 250-person crew working 20-hour days, seven days a week. We do expect the president to give reporters a tour of some of that progress. We will bring that to you when we have it.

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BLITZER: Betsy Klein at the White House for us, thanks very, very much.

And we're going to continue to monitor what the president is saying to reporters right now.

BROWN: Yes, he's continuing to speak.

Still ahead: The government agency responsible for making sure your food, drugs, makeup, and other products are safe may finally have a new leader. But she could also face another contentious confirmation battle.

Plus:

BLITZER: Fighting for the farm. A lifelong Kentucky farmer explains why her family turned down a $26 million offer for their land from an unknown tech company.

Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

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BLITZER: Happening now: new details about community pushback to massive data centers. It's part of our series on "Decoding A.I." this week.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro announced limits on data centers in his state. He says his administration will no longer, his words, no longer put them at the head of the line for construction permits, and that he's ending lucrative tax exemptions unless certain standards are met. Shapiro says Pennsylvania is seeing a -- quote -- "unacceptable number

of speculative proposals for data centers" and that many are -- quote -- "led by developers who have no regard for local communities."

BROWN: Also happening now: "Kick rocks and don't come back," that is the message from a Kentucky farmer to an A.I. company after they offered her millions of dollars for her land so that they could build a data center on it.

With us now is Delsia Bare. She turned down $26 million to turn her farm into an A.I. data center.

Delsia, good morning to you. Thank you for coming on.

You know, $26 million, that's life-changing money. Tell us more about why you said no.

DELSIA BARE, KENTUCKY FARMER: It can be life-changing. It can be life-changing in the wrong ways as well.

Biggest reason to turn it down is don't want to lose my home.

BROWN: And you say it could be life-changing and the wrong reasons as well. Tell us more about that and how you're thinking about that.

BARE: Well, when you go to thinking about these data centers coming in and putting their set -- putting mercury and lead and cadmium over your aquifers, needing to consume large amounts of water, raising the temperatures in your community, vibrating at a low frequency that can bring up cortisol levels in the human body, cause miscarriages and other things to go wrong, $26 million don't look like it's so much whenever you go to figuring all of that stuff in.

And the way that it can harm the entire state of Kentucky, I like to think that it would be the bluegrass forever, instead of turning to the brown grass from data centers.

BROWN: And, of course, the impacts on health and so far, all of that is being researched.

But you said no to $26 million because you said you don't want to give up your home. This land means a lot to you. Tell us more about why this land means so much to you and your family that you have had for hundreds of years.

BARE: I'm not sure that I can tell people that don't understand what a farm is to people.

If you didn't originally stick with whatever your family started out doing in the farm line, you may not respect the farmland for what it does and what it brings to your table. None of us can do without fresh air, fresh water, or fresh food.

And the decisions that I'm seeing all the way across the board for this nation, the amount of land that these data centers are trying to consume, if you are human at all, you're not going to be that robot or that A.I. You're still going to have to have fresh water, fresh food, and fresh air.

And I call it what I would call an anti-human movement, right down to the technology that will remove your job from you eventually. I think we just ought to have humans stand up against it all the way along. I don't see that many benefits to taking your food, water, and air away from you...

BROWN: And initially...

BARE: ... and the places that you live and play, whether you go to a lake or whether you go to a beach.

BROWN: And, initially, I believe I read you and your mom said yes and then pulled it back. Can you walk us through more about that decision and why you initially said yes and which company that was...

BARE: Well, most of that was health problems. We had health problems. When they showed up at our door with a real estate agent and saying, we will just give you some money, you all just pack up and leave, I had a really bad back infection at the time. My retinas are detached.

My mother has trouble walking. They threatened us through East Kentucky Power with something called eminent domain. My family has been through eminent domain three times on another piece of property that we have up near Orangeburg. None of that is ever fun in a court.

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Your personal life doesn't mean anything usually to a court. The judge is looking at how they can make more money for the state usually whenever they're doing that. And, in this case it was a road called the AA.

And the Maysville-Mason County Landfill up at Orangeburg took two hundred and 232 acres from us before.

BROWN: Yes.

BARE: (AUDIO GAP) The county attorney has been a part of my life since 198. And, I mean, I was like 13 years old, and only thing that you can hear is, well, you have worked hard, but everybody else deserves more than you do.

BROWN: Yes.

And just for our viewers who may not know that the eminent domain is the power of the government to take private property for public use. I'm wondering, again, as you go back to how this all began, you got the knock on the door. Can you tell us more about the company that was behind this offer?

BARE: I can't tell you a thing about company behind the offer. They had all of the local politicians sign NDAs, nondisclosure agreements.

It's a secret who they are. They don't want to come forward and tell you who they are. They just want 2,093 acres. And the rest of us in the county can kick rocks would be their way of putting it toward us. They got something bigger for -- bigger and more important to do with our farmland.

BROWN: What do you want to see your governor -- Governor Beshear, he was just on the show yesterday. What do you want to see him do on this issue?

BARE: I want to see him throw on the brakes. They haven't even began to consider the 75 percent tax abatements across the board for this mess.

It cuts every -- it cuts the nose off of every taxpayer's face in Kentucky and most of this nation. Taxpayers are tired of being abused by these people. You don't get to be a trillion-dollar corporation just on your own merit.

The tax breaks to these companies are ridiculous. Most hardworking families is just down against the grid. They can't ever really raise their head up. Those big tax breaks go to these big corporations, and their families I'm talking about never do see any of that.

BROWN: What do you say to others, though, that have embraced these data centers and believe it will help their community with jobs and so forth? There are examples in other parts of the country, in other states.

So I just wonder what you say to those who do embrace this.

BARE: Well, I mean, from what I can see, some of them have regretted it. There's Prineville, Oregon, come up a dead town pretty much. They're talking to me about other places in I think it was Salt Lake City, Utah.

BROWN: Yes.

BARE: Harvard's done medical studies on what it does to the people, their bodies and everything.

You might have embraced the kiss of death. I'd rather still be standing in 20 years than to find out that I'm opening the door to a predator that took my child's life and my grandchildren's life and all my neighbors' lives.

I wouldn't want to have been them in Prineville that sold out.

BROWN: Yes.

BARE: They will face that judgment on judgment day for everybody that died.

BROWN: So this is also a religious decision for you.

Delsia Bare, thank you so much for coming on. We really appreciate your time. Appreciate your time, and it's always nice to have a fellow Kentuckian on this show. Thank you.

I think my Kentucky just came out a little bit there.

(LAUGHTER)

BLITZER: Yes. You're a proud Kentuckian.

BROWN: Yes. When I talk to my fellow Kentuckians, sometimes, the accents comes back.

BLITZER: I know you will.

All right, just ahead: why President Trump is now delaying major new tariffs on Canada that would have hit $20 billion worth of goods coming into the United States, including booze, furniture, and dairy.

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