Michael Carbonara says he opposes local data center, but his actions say otherwise

Michael Carbonara, a Republican candidate for Florida’s 22nd Congressional District, is defending data centers and bitcoin mining operations even as he rejects a local data center project. Given his ongoing support, and ties to a bitcoin data center, known as a bitcoin mine, Carbonara needs to explain to voters how his words conflict with his actions and business interests.

Speaking at a candidate forum last week, Carbonara said he opposes a proposed development in Palm Beach called Project Tango. The project, on a 202-acre site, has drawn pushback from locals, and the County Commission hit the pause button over concerns about noise pollution, environmental impacts and safety, according to WCMU Public Media.

But despite that opposition, he broadly defended data centers, noting that he has built one, just not for artificial intelligence.

“I have built a data center, but it’s not an AI data center. It’s actually a bitcoin mining operation,” he said at the forum. “I’ve been attacked by the George Soros and the No Kings people … so it’s been quite a ride because they want to attack innovation.”

Carbonara was referring to a bitcoin mine in the eastern Upper Peninsula in Michigan. Carbonara’s name is on the permit for the mine, which has faced significant pushback from locals and is currently facing a lawsuit from Lake Superior Academy, a school that argues the mine is creating noise that disrupts student learning.

The school had to pause an expansion to its campus due to the mine, and locals in Michigan have complained that they’ve had no contact with Carbonara about the mine.

Carbonara, meanwhile, has argued bitcoin mining, unlike AI data centers, can actually bring down energy costs.

Because the CD 22 race is crowded and contentious, the project could be a big part of campaigning. Carbonara is one of seven Republican candidates running. Two Democrats are running, Pia Dandiya and Kaysia Earley.

Carbonara, along with Republican opponent Casey Askar, is the subject of a website criticizing them for investments in the Middle East. And Carbonara is largely funding his campaign through bitcoin. He raised nearly $1 million in cryptocurrency at the beginning of his campaign, before he moved to the CD 22 race after mid-decade redistricting.

Under the new CD 22 map, 54.5% of voters supported President Donald Trump in the 2024 Presidential Election, though four years prior, Democrat Joe Biden carried 51% of the vote there, according to an analysis by MCI Maps.