Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer speaks at a press conference

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) speaks alongside a bipartisan group of senators following passage of the CHIPS Act on July 27, 2022. (Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

Progressives Slam Senate Passage of $76 Billion 'Corporate Giveaway'

"Rather than give aid to needy American families," said one progressive group, "the Senate decided to rise to the occasion to cut taxes for already-profitable technology companies like Intel."

The U.S. Senate on Wednesday passed sweeping bipartisan legislation that Sen. Bernie Sanders and progressive advocacy groups decried as a massive giveaway to corporations such as Intel, whose CEO has been lobbying aggressively in support of the bill's subsidies for the profitable microchip industry.

"Congress should be ashamed to pass this corporate giveaway after a year of complete failure to do anything whatsoever for needy American families."

Known as the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) Act, the $280 billion legislation is purportedly an attempt to bolster domestic manufacturing and alleviate the U.S. shortage of microchips, which are used in cars, phones, medical equipment, and other everyday electronic devices.

Intel congratulated the Senate on its vote, hailing it as a step toward advancing "American leadership in semiconductor manufacturing" and strengthening "American national and economic security."

But Sanders (I-Vt.) has repeatedly warned that the bill's $52 billion in subsidies for the microchip industry--as well as its $24 billion in tax credits for semiconductor plants--lack safeguards to prevent companies from using the taxpayer money to buy back their own stock, offshore U.S. jobs, or fight unionization efforts.

Sanders was the only member of the Senate Democratic caucus to vote against the bill, which passed by an overwhelming margin of 64-33. The House is expected to follow suit later this week.

In a speech ahead of Wednesday's vote, the Vermont senator reiterated his criticism of the measure, characterizing it as a no-strings-attached handout to profitable companies.

"Whenever it comes to protecting the needs of low-income or working families, I hear over and over again, 'We just cannot afford to do that because of the deficit,'" Sanders said. "All of that profound and serious concern about the deficit fades away when it comes to providing a $76 billion blank check to the highly profitable microchip industry with no protections at all for the American taxpayer."

In a statement following the bill's passage, Morris Pearl, the chair of the Patriotic Millionaires, said that "after months of paralysis on Build Back Better, today the Senate finally took action."

"But rather than give aid to needy American families... the Senate decided to rise to the occasion to cut taxes for already-profitable technology companies like Intel," said Pearl. "I'm sure this is great for billionaires like [Intel co-founder] Gordon Moore, but it doesn't do a thing for millions of Americans who need support in these challenging economic times. And it won't do much to encourage companies to invest in chip fabrication--Intel is already building chip factories as fast as they can."

As Recode's Rebecca Heilweil wrote Wednesday, "while its biggest champions have connected the CHIPS Act to the ongoing chip shortage, the legislation won't really help, at least in the short term."

"The chip factories produced by this package won't be complete for years, and the bulk of the funding won't necessarily go toward basic chips, also known as legacy chips, which account for much of the ongoing shortage," Heilweil explained. "And that shortage may be nearing its end anyway."

Echoing Sanders, Pearl said that "there are so many things that our government could do to decrease the gross inequality that is spreading like a cancer in our nation; it is hard for me to believe that they want to run for reelection with a platform of giving tax breaks to some of the biggest and most successful companies in our nation."

"Congress should be ashamed," he added, "to pass this corporate giveaway after a year of complete failure to do anything whatsoever for needy American families."

An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder


Dear Common Dreams reader,

The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets.

That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done.

Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good.

Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support.

That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you.

Our Summer Campaign is now underway, and there’s never been a more urgent time for Common Dreams to be as vigilant as possible. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams?

Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most.

- Craig Brown, Co-founder

Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.