In recent years, domestic and foreign policy analysts have w…
In recent years, domestic and foreign policy analysts have warned that American reliance on computer semiconductors manufactured overseas posed increasing problems. Chinese threats to Taiwan, where a large percentage of the world’s semiconductor supply is manufactured, worried some observers. Then, as the COVID-19 pandemic subsided, a global shortage of computer chips led to an increase in the prices and a decrease in the availability of many consumer products, including automobiles. In response, Congress passed the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, which provided $78 billion in federal funding for research and development, as well as subsidies and tax credits for chip manufacturing facilities built and operated within the United States. Although touted by its backers and President Biden as a job-creating bill, the law was aimed at meeting a longtime goal of American foreign policy, namely