I have cubase elements 8 trial and I am getting static when recording an audio track. Is this intended with the 30 day trial?
No, this version should work normally during the trial period. Maybe you have some demo VSTs? It is common for a static or white noise to be introduced for trial versions of VSTs. Usually the noise repeats on a timed basis.
Regards 
Hi,
on the risk of being wrong, I’d comment that the most common reason for static noise in audio tracks, is using a low-quality microphone or built-in consumer-grade soundcard.
If you have proper hardware and you adjust the gain properly, noise levels should be hardly noticable.