The Trump administration is helping one of Elon Musk's companies fight a civil rights lawsuit that alleges it is illegally running dozens of natural gas turbines to power a US$20 billion AI data centre in Mississippi.The NAACP and other groups say Musk's xAI subsidiary failed to get a permit for its power plant — which is located near homes, schools and churches — creating health risks for families in North Mississippi and nearby Memphis and violating the federal Clean Air Act.

The US Justice Department intervened to back xAI in the NAACP's pollution suit, arguing Musk's gas-burning data centre is vital to military operations.

The DOJ intervened in the NAACP's lawsuit against xAI, arguing its unpermitted gas turbines powering the Colossus 2 data center support classified Pentagon