Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton applauds the implementation of the bipartisan CHIPS Act, tweeting that Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo is “leading the way with a blueprint for implementation.”
Raimondo’s Twitter handle doesn’t mention national security at the top — it says she is “committed to helping American workers & businesses, creating good-paying jobs, and empowering a more equitable economy for all.”
But Clinton prioritizes the CHIPS implementation as a national security issue, calling the expansion of domestic chip production a “national and economic security imperative.”
The two — national and economic security — are one and the same, Clinton implies.
Expanding domestic production of the logic and memory chips that power our devices is a national and economic security imperative.@SecRaimondo is leading the way with a blueprint for implementation.
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) February 28, 2023
This is smart industrial policy for the 21st century. https://t.co/EHNPKRGEGM
In her own tweet, Raimondo also chooses to emphasize national security first, just as Clinton does. Breaking down the program’s “main goals,” Raimondo says “first, we’re going to protect our national security.”
In her caption, Raimondo re-emphasizes the point that CHIPS will “solidify America’s global leadership and ensure our long-term national security.”
The CHIPS and Science Act is a historic opportunity to solidify America’s global leadership and ensure our long-term national security.
— Secretary Gina Raimondo (@SecRaimondo) February 23, 2023
We’re committed to getting it right. pic.twitter.com/ogih4QRSHq
When the Senate passed the bipartisan CHIPS Act last summer, President Biden said “it will mean more resilient American supply chains, so we are never so reliant on foreign countries for the critical technologies that we need for American consumers and national security.”
In addition to funding research, the $280 billion legislation gives tax breaks, grants, and other incentives to big computer chip manufacturers who invest in US-based manufacturing. The bipartisan bill passed the Senate 64 -33 with the support of influential Republicans like Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, Senate Commerce Committee member, said at the time that “There is no more important competition than the one for technological supremacy between the United States and China,” supporting CHIPS to help the US win that competition.
About Gina Raimondo:
Gina Raimondo is an American politician and businesswoman who is the 40th Commerce Secretary of the United States. Raimondo served as the 75th Governor of the State of Rhode Island from 2015 to 2021. She was born on May 17, 1971, in Smithfield, Rhode Island, and is a member of the Democratic Party.
Before entering politics, Raimondo worked as a venture capitalist and co-founded the investment firm Point Judith Capital. She later served as the General Treasurer of Rhode Island from 2011 to 2015, where she oversaw the state’s public pension system and implemented a number of reforms to improve its financial sustainability.
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