By Kevin Stone/KTAR News
PHOENIX — U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton of Arizona defended the CHIPS Act on Wednesday after President Donald Trump called it “a horrible, horrible thing” during his speech to Congress.
“Instead of attacking the CHIPS Act, we ought to be celebrating it as a huge, successful policy — a bipartisan win for the United States of America,” Stanton told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Arizona’s Morning News.
What did President Trump say about CHIPS Act?
Trump took aim at the Biden-era legislation during his speech before a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night.
“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,” the president said.
He also suggested to House Speaker Mike Johnson that Congress should eliminate the CHIPS Act, drawing applause from Republicans.
“You should get rid of the CHIPS Act and whatever’s left over, Mr. Speaker, you should use it to reduce debt or any other reason you want to,” Trump said.
Stanton disagreed with Trump about the effectiveness of the CHIPS Act, saying it established the U.S. as a leader in a pivotal industry.
“The CHIPS Act is not just subsidizing the semiconductor industry. … It’s an investment in workforce training, and it’s an investment in the science behind … this most important technology,” the Valley Democrat said.
How has Arizona benefited from the CHIPS Act?
Then-President Joe Biden signed the CHIPS and Science Act into law in August 2022, authorizing tens of billion of dollars for domestic semiconductor research and manufacturing.
Arizona has been a major beneficiary through the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), which is building a massive chipmaking operation in north Phoenix.
“Since we’ve done the CHIPS Act, we have had more foreign direct investment — including TSMC — in Phoenix, more than any other place in the United States of America. It has been a massive success,” Stanton said.
After already committing $40 billion for two microchip fabrication plants in north Phoenix, TSMC was awarded $6.6 billion in grants plus loans of up to $5 million through the 2022 law. The company then added a third Phoenix fab to its plans in April 2024, boosting its investment to a total of $65 billion.
On Monday, TSMC revealed plans to pump another $100 billion into its U.S. operations. The new investment will go toward two more packaging fabs and a research and development center in Arizona.
A day after joining TSMC officials to announce the latest expansion at the White House on Monday, Trump said his tariff policy influenced the company’s decision.
“We’re giving them no money,” the president said Tuesday night. “All that was important to them was they didn’t want to pay the tariffs. So, they came and they’re building.”
Stanton, meanwhile, argued that the new investment wouldn’t have been possible without the foundation laid by the previous administration.
“Without the CHIPS Act and the statement by Congress that we want to be a leader in this industry, the very investment that the president announced … in Phoenix would not be happening,” he said.