President Donald Trump has slammed critics of his administration's move to see the US Government acquiring a 10 percent stake in Intel.
The government's involvement comes after the 79-year-old POTUS was pushing for the electronic company's CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, to resign as he alleged he had 'ties to Chinese firms'.
“He walked in wanting to keep his job, and he ended up giving us $10bn for the United States,” Trump said on Friday (August 22).
But despite the huge score for the taxpayer, people have raised their concerns that the Trump administration has moved into socialism.
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"ALL HAIL CHAIRMAN TRUMP! WITH HIS GLORIOUS 10% PURCHASE OF INTEL, THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF AMERICA ENTERS A BOLD NEW ERA OF GOVERNMENT-RUN BUSINESS," joked Californian Governor Gavin Newsom on Twitter.
Yes, when a government owns private businesses, it's a form of state socialism - social ownership of production.
The Republican president has since hit back in the form of a scathing response on Truth Social.
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"I PAID ZERO FOR INTEL, IT IS WORTH APPROXIMATELY 11 BILLION DOLLARS. All goes to the USA," he wrote.
"Why are 'stupid' people unhappy with that? I will make deals like that for our Country all day long.
"I will also help those companies that make such lucrative deals with the United States States. I love seeing their stock price go up, making the USA RICHER, AND RICHER. More jobs for America!!! Who would not want to make deals like that?"
Intel has explained that the government's stake will be funded by '$5.7 billion in grants previously awarded, but not yet paid, to Intel under the U.S. CHIPS and Science Act and $3.2 billion awarded to the company as part of the Secure Enclave program'.
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It sounds like a huge scoop but just as Governor Newsom quipped, people are suggesting it has come at the expense of socialism - conservative radio host Erick Erickson being one of them.
He said: “You can’t just be against socialism when the left does it. If you’re not against socialism overall, guess what? You’re going to get socialism. So if you support socialism, apparently Donald Trump is your guy.”
He's referencing the criticism socialist Zohran Mamdani received when running for mayor of New York City.
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Speaking of the move to incorporate the US Government into the business, Intel CEO Tan said: "As the only semiconductor company that does leading-edge logic R&D [research and development] and manufacturing in the US, Intel is deeply committed to ensuring the world's most advanced technologies are American made.
"President Trump's focus on US chip manufacturing is driving historic investments in a vital industry that is integral to the country's economic and national security."
Topics: Donald Trump, US News, Business, Politics, Twitter, Truth Social
Joe Yates