Trump Wants To Kill $52.7 Billion CHIPS Subsidy Law

President Donald Trump has urged U.S. lawmakers to repeal the CHIPS Act, a landmark 2022 bipartisan law that provides $52.7 billion in subsidies for semiconductor manufacturing, arguing that the funds should instead be used to pay down the national debt, David Shepardson reported for Reuters.

The CHIPS and Science Act, signed by then-President Joe Biden in August 2022, included $39 billion in subsidies for U.S. semiconductor manufacturing and $75 billion in government lending authority.

“Your CHIPS Act is a horrible, horrible thing. We give hundreds of billions of dollars, and it doesn’t mean a thing. They take our money, and they don’t spend it,” Trump said in a speech to Congress.

“You should get rid of the CHIPS Act, and whatever is left over, Mr. Speaker, you should use it to reduce the debt,” he added.

The CHIPS and Science Act, signed by then-President Joe Biden in August 2022, included $39 billion in subsidies for U.S. semiconductor manufacturing and $75 billion in government lending authority.

Trump’s remarks mark his strongest criticism yet of the bipartisan CHIPS Act. “We don’t have to give them money,” Trump said, suggesting that avoiding new tariffs would be enough to convince chipmakers to build factories in the U.S.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has praised the program but has stated that he wants to review awards finalized under Biden.

Under former Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, the Biden administration secured agreements from all five leading-edge global semiconductor firms to build factories in the U.S., citing national security concerns over imported chips.

In the final weeks of Biden’s presidency, the Commerce Department finalized more than $33 billion in semiconductor grants, including:

• $4.745 billion to South Korea’s Samsung Electronics

• Up to $7.86 billion for Intel

• $6.6 billion for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC)