Source: United States Senator for Pennsylvania Pat Toomey
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) today opposed efforts to proceed to Senate consideration of a massive new federal intervention into commercial manufacturing. At the time of the vote, legislative text was still unclear, but the one area that will be included in the ultimate bill is over $75 billion to subsidize the semiconductor industry—commonly known as the computer chips industry.
“Tonight, the Senate failed at even the most basic of functions: being able to disclose what it was voting on prior to doing so. Unfortunately, the one item that is certain to be included is a corporate welfare hand out of more than $76 billion to an extremely sophisticated, profitable industry in the U.S. — semiconductor manufacturing,” said Senator Toomey.
“As history has taught us, centrally planning economies never works. When the government allocates capital, it inevitably drives investments to the politically well-connected at the expense of taxpayers. It’s not the government’s job to pick winners and losers, yet that is exactly what this effort is intended to do.
“If we truly want to beat China, we can’t emulate Beijing’s semi-socialist economic model. The best way to encourage investment, spur economic growth, and enhance American competitiveness is to create policies that benefit all industries, businesses, and workers alike. Examples could include: making the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act permanent; enhancing protection for intellectual property; reducing barriers to trade; removing regulatory barriers; and revoking the Biden Administration’s counterproductive energy policies.”