Latest news with #CHIPS
Miami Herald
09-06-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Biden alums could boost their House ranks in midterm elections
WASHINGTON - As a senior attorney in the Commerce Department, Eric Chung helped implement the 2022 law known as the CHIPS and Science Act, a bipartisan effort championed by President Joe Biden to boost domestic semiconductor manufacturing and scientific research. But Chung left his civil service job in April, shortly after President Donald Trump called the law a "horrible, horrible thing" in a joint address to Congress and urged lawmakers to scrap the CHIPS program. (Last week, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told Senate appropriators that Trump is renegotiating some of Biden's semiconductor grants.) "With elections, there are consequences and you expect some changes,'' Chung said. "But the idea of just going after a program that's so bipartisan ... for no apparent reason, just railing against it, certainly disappointed me, and I just couldn't watch it unfold." Now Chung is running for Congress - he's one of at least four Democrats hoping to flip Michigan's 10th District - and he's highlighting his experience working on one of the Biden administration's signature legislative achievements. He isn't the only one. As Trump tries to unwind much of his Democratic predecessor's agenda, a handful of federal employees who helped carry out the Biden administration's policy priorities are seeking House seats in 2026. They are mostly competing in battleground districts and are expected to face competitive primaries. The list includes Michael Roth, a former official in the Small Business Administration vying to unseat New Jersey Republican Thomas H. Kean Jr.; Sanjyot Dunung, a former member of Biden's 2020 foreign policy working group running for an open seat in Illinois; and Cait Conley, who was director of counterterrorism on the National Security Council, then served at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and is now challenging New York GOP Rep. Mike Lawler. And career diplomat and former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget A. Brink is considering a run in Michigan's 7th District, which is currently held by Republican freshman Tom Barrett. Brink resigned earlier this year, citing disagreements with Trump's Ukraine policy. If successful, these Democrats would join other former Biden administration officials elected to the House, including freshman Reps. Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire, a former Biden Justice Department attorney, and April McClain Delaney of Maryland, a former deputy assistant secretary in the Commerce Department. Another Biden alumnus, Rhode Island Rep. Gabe Amo, came to Congress in 2023, after winning a special election for an open seat. Other prominent Biden alumni have launched 2026 gubernatorial campaigns, including former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland in New Mexico and former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra in California. The highest-profile member of the Biden team - former Vice President Kamala Harris - is also weighing a gubernatorial run in the Golden State. Moving from an executive branch appointment to elective office isn't a new trend but the reckoning over Biden's mental acuity during his time in office, spurred by the recent publication of several books, has raised complicated questions about his legacy. Amo, who worked in the White House as a senior adviser to Biden, was recently pressed about whether he saw signs of the former president's cognitive decline. The congressman told WJAR-TV in Providence that he saw Biden "execute the functions of that job in a way that I was supportive of, as someone there in the White House." "I was proud of the work that I was able to do, and proud of the work that he did to usher in key advances for the American people," Amo said. Several of the candidates seeking seats in 2026 said they were partly motivated to run after growing increasingly distressed watching Trump dismantle Biden's legacy. Trump "is squandering America's blue star reputation,'' said Dunung, who worked on international trade and policies to strengthen small-business exports as a member of Biden's foreign policy working group during the 2020 campaign cycle. "We are losing our good reputation around the world for being a trusted ally and a trusted partner,'' she said. Dunung is running for Illinois' 8th District, which Democratic Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi - a child of Indian immigrants like Dunung - is vacating to run for Senate. While Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales rates the race Solid Democratic, Trump significantly cut into his margins in the suburban Chicago district, from a 15-point loss in 2020 to a 7-point deficit last year, according to calculations by The Downballot. Dunung, who describes herself as "a pragmatic workhorse," said she launched her bid for Congress partly as a reaction to what she called the "chaos ... and crony capitalism" of the Trump administration. "I'm also about change from within our party, the Democratic Party," she said. "I think there are better ways to do things, and we need to prioritize efficiency. We need to prioritize getting results, not necessarily being beholden to special interests." Both Dunung and Chung recently won endorsements from the political arm of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus. Chung is also seeking an open House seat - Michigan's 10th District outside Detroit, where Republican incumbent John James is running for governor. Chung initially intended to stay in his position at the Commerce Department even after Trump won. "If any program was going to be safe in this administration, it should have been a program like (CHIPS),'' he said. "I was hopeful that we could work all together across the aisle. And as a career civil servant, your oath is to the Constitution, and your oath is to the country." But Chung, who grew up in Michigan as the son of Vietnamese immigrants, concluded that he had to leave. "I wasn't waking up every morning thinking I'd run for office,'' he said, "but when I saw that my community and basically every part of the American dream that I had experienced growing up in Michigan was in potential jeopardy, I wanted to do all I could." Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.
Politico
06-06-2025
- Business
- Politico
5 questions for Sree Ramaswamy
Presented by With help from Anthony Adragna and Aaron Mak Hello, and welcome to this week's installment of the Future in Five Questions. This week we interviewed Sree Ramaswamy, a former senior policy adviser to the Biden administration's Commerce Department, whose work included facilitating the CHIPS and Science Act. Ramaswamy is now the chief innovation officer for NobleReach, a recently launched nonprofit that works to set up private-public partnerships through programs focused on talent and innovation, including at universities. He spoke about the changes under the new administration as well as the importance of securing supply chains against adversarial rivals, especially for critical technologies. An edited and condensed version of the conversation follows: What's one underrated big idea? I'm going to come at this from a national security standpoint. One of the things we have struggled with as a country is how to deal with the presence of adversarial inputs in our technology. That manifests in different ways. It manifests in people concerned about their chips coming from China. It manifests in people concerned about the fact that your printed circuit boards and the software that's flashed on them are done in Vietnam or in Malaysia by some third-party contractor, and we're like: Is there a back door here? Is somebody putting in a Trojan horse? We worry about the capability of the stack as it becomes larger and larger. We worry about the fact that we may have blind spots, both in terms of where adversaries can gain capabilities but also where they can insert vulnerabilities. What's a technology that you think is overhyped? The last few years, we've seen various aspects of the government come up with a list of critical technologies. Before we had the CHIPS Act, there was this thing called the Endless Frontiers Act, which had a list of critical technologies. I would say almost every single one of those technologies you could argue is overhyped. Take a look at those lists and ask yourself what technology is not on this list, and there's no answer to that question. Every single technology you can think of is on our list of the most critical technologies. It's sort of like saying I have 100 priorities — then you don't have any priorities. What I would like to see is a shift of attention away from the technologies themselves, and to the problems that the technologies can solve. What could the government be doing regarding technology that it isn't? What the government has traditionally done well is focus on the supply side of tech. It creates incentives, it builds infrastructure — the labs, test beds, it builds all of that stuff. It creates incentives that we've done with tax credits, subsidies and grant programs. What it is struggling to do is figure out how it can help on the demand side. It can tell you it needs warships, like right now. It needed them like a week ago, it needs them over the next year, or six months. It's also good at telling you in 15 years, this is how we think warfare is going to change. What it struggles to tell you is the in-between, because the in-between is where the tech stuff comes in. So when you say that you are trying to prioritize technology, what you're doing is you're prioritizing stuff that is in laboratories today. They're in university labs, they're in federal labs. They're going through proof of concept. They're going through early-stage validation. What that cohort needs to develop is what problem do you need to solve in like six years, seven years. It takes somewhere between five to eight years on average for some of these hard technologies to come to market. What you need is a demand signal sitting there saying, 'I don't need this warship now, but in seven years, I need my warships to have this capability.' And that's the missing piece. If we could get our government to start articulating that sort of demand, that could go a long way in helping develop technologies, de-risking them, and you'll be signaling that there's a customer for these things, which means that a bunch of VC guys will start crowding, because that's what VCs care about. They care about, do you have a path to get a customer? What book most shaped your conception of the future? [Laughs] I've forgotten how to read — my attention span is now three-minute-long YouTube videos. (Note: He later said the book that shaped his concept of the future was 'The Long Game' by Rush Doshi.) What has surprised you the most this year? I think what has surprised me the most this year is how easily and quickly things that we thought could not be changed are changing. And you know, you can take that both in a positive spirit and a negative spirit. When I was in the private sector, there were certain things that you feel are sort of off limits, both good and bad. There's a certain way of doing things, and if you stray beyond that, it's either illegal or it's immoral, or you're gonna get jeered by your peers. I definitely felt that in the government as well. There are certain things — even with something like CHIPS, these big investment programs — there were still spoken and unspoken things that you could do, things that you could not do, and I ran up against many of them. What I find surprising is how quickly many of those things are falling by the wayside. Changing the way federal agencies work, changing the way our allied relationships work, changing the way the trade regime works. In a broad sense, it's good, because it tells us that this country is capable of moving quickly. It does show you that if we need to, we can move. What I'm looking forward to, now that we've shown that you can move in big ways, including companies, can now add an end state to it and say, OK, we really need to be able to move in a big way to solve this problem: completely diversify our supply chains away from adversaries, completely have a clean AI tech stack in the next three years. I left government thinking about our inability to move quickly. So I'm glad to see it — I'm not happy with all of it — but I'm glad to see we can. Tech's heavy emissions footprint Carbon emissions for the world's leading tech company operations surged 150 percent between 2020 and 2023, according to a report from the United Nations' digital agency. Compared to a 2020 baseline, operational emissions for Amazon grew 182 percent in 2023 against 2020 levels, Microsoft's grew 155 percent, Meta's increased 145 percent, and Alphabet's grew 138 percent. This was all for 2023, the last year for which complete data is available. Demand for energy-intensive artificial intelligence and data centers has only surged since then. Just 10 tech companies accounted for half of the industry's electricity demand in 2023, according to the report. Those are China Mobile, Amazon, Samsung Electronics, China Telecom, Alphabet, Microsoft, TSMC, China Unicom, SK Hynix and Meta. Overall, however, the tech sector is a relatively small player in global emissions. The 166 companies covered in the report accounted for 0.8 percent of all global energy-related emissions in 2023, it concluded. Anthropic opposes AI moratorium Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei took what looked like a bold, independent stance on federal AI laws yesterday — but was it really so bold? In a New York Times op-ed, Amodei came out against the 10-year moratorium on state AI laws that Congress is proposing. He argued the moratorium is 'far too blunt an instrument,' and instead recommended that Congress first pass a federal transparency law. A tech CEO calling for federal regulation of his own industry? It's almost like 2023 again. But several critics have pointed out that this wasn't quite such a disinterested stance. The federal law he's looking for would — in his proposal — pre-empt all those inconvenient state laws. 'If a federal transparency standard is adopted,' Amodei wrote, 'it could then supersede state laws, creating a unified national framework.' Former OpenAI researcher Steven Adler critiqued the idea in an X post: 'Anthropic's CEO only says he wants regulation so he seems responsible. He knows there's no risk he'll actually get regulated.' And there's an argument that the law wouldn't change much. As Amodei himself notes, major AI companies like Google and OpenAI already have self-imposed transparency requirements. So does Anthropic – the company recently disclosed that its model tried to blackmail a user in a test run. DFD asked Anthropic about the criticisms. The company responded by clarifying that the transparency standard would mainly supersede state laws mitigating catastrophic AI risks, like cyberattacks. Amodei cautions that companies may abandon their transparency measures as their models get more complex, so the federal law might be necessary. Even so, current state AI laws have more teeth and specificity than the federal transparency standard that Amodei is proposing. South Dakota imposes civil and criminal liabilities on election deepfakes. Tennessee law prevents AI from impersonating musicians. New Hampshire prohibits state agencies from using AI to surveil the public. Alondra Nelson, a key architect of federal AI policy under President Joe Biden, wrote to DFD: '[A] federal requirement for industry to provide more information is a good foundation for states' laws to build upon, but it cannot replace them.' Amodei frames his proposal as a compromise between the goals of states and the federal government. In such a bargain, the big winner could be an industry that is already used to sliding through those gaps. post of the day THE FUTURE IN 5 LINKS Stay in touch with the whole team: Mohar Chatterjee (mchatterjee@ Steve Heuser (sheuser@ Nate Robson (nrobson@ and Daniella Cheslow (dcheslow@
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Yahoo
Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay talks Dana Chandler, anti-crime initiatives
TOPEKA (KSNT) – Shawnee County District Attorney, Mike Kagay, joined the 27 News morning newscast on June 5 to talk about some recent crime topics. Kagay discussed the latest on the Dana Chandler sentencing, clarifying the appeal process, his thoughts on how the city is tackling crime and more. He said his staff have been busy lately. 'We've been very busy,' Kagay said. 'We've been trying a lot of cases and trying a lot of serious cases. I know there's been a lot of attention lately on one in particular, but I just want to share that going back for the last almost 20 jury trials in major felony cases, which would include murder cases and high-level sex offenses, we've been obtaining guilty verdicts, consecutive guilty verdicts. And so the work of our major felony team is going very well. And I'm very proud of the contributions and the professionalism they bring every day.' $1.9 billion CHIPS grant denied for Kansas 27 News asked Kagay about Dana Chandler's recent sentencing in Westmoreland. He clarified her sentencing to give a better understanding of the verdict moving forward. 'So as I'm sure you know, we had the sentencing in Pottawattamie County this week and the judge imposed two consecutive life sentences, which means that each life sentence is 25 years before she's eligible for parole,' Kagay said. 'And so that time has to run back-to-back. That's what consecutive means. And so overall, the sentence is 50 years before she's eligible for parole.' This was Chandler's third trial for the deaths of her ex-husband Mike Sisco and his fiancé Karen Harkness, who were killed by gunfire in their bed in 2002. 'Now, she has served some time based on a prior conviction,' Kagay said. 'And so she'll get credit for that time. But all in, she's… the overall sentence is 50 years before she's eligible for parole.' Kagay also told 27 News, 'the sentence was an emotional hearing,' as the victims' families spoke out. He said he was honored to be there and to support them. As for what is next with Chandler's case, Kagay said his part is done for now. 'Well, our part is now done for now,' Kagay said. 'If there is an appeal filed, which I expect because that standard, you know, any, I cannot think of a single time we've gone to a jury trial and convicted somebody for murder where they did not file an appeal. So this is very standard for us.' The Satanic Grotto sets date for 'Witching Hour' protest 27 News also spoke to Kagay about the city's new police chief and anti-crime initiatives. You can watch the full interview above. For more crime news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Lutnick says Commerce Department ‘renegotiating' CHIPS contracts
This story was originally published on Manufacturing Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Manufacturing Dive newsletter. The Commerce Department is renegotiating some of the multibillion-dollar contracts to chipmakers funded by the CHIPS and Science Act, Secretary Howard Lutnick said during a congressional budget hearing Wednesday. Lutnick said that he's pushing for funding levels that amount to "4% or less" of a project's total value. "A 10% funding just seemed overly generous and we've been able to renegotiate them," he added. Lutnick cited the example of chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., which was granted $6.6 billion in CHIPS funding, deciding to increase its U.S. investments. The company unveiled plans in March to invest $100 billion in U.S. manufacturing, on top of a previously announced $65 billion. "So if the question is, 'Are we renegotiating?' The answer is, 'Absolutely, for the benefit of the American taxpayer,'" Lutnick said. The secretary made the comments as senators grilled him over his department's proposal to cut 16.5% of its budget, including a $325 million cut to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, which oversees CHIPS and Science Act funding programs. Lutnick was on Capital Hill Wednesday to defend the department's proposal, part of the federal funding bill currently making its way through Congress. In its budget proposal, department officials said the cut to NIST was due to its "development of curricula that advance a radical climate agenda." The proposal called out NIST's Circular Economy Program, which advances measurement science and related initiatives to promote more sustainable circular economies and supply chains, for pushing "environmental alarmism." While the proposal does not mention the CHIPS program, its staff and future have both been called into question by the White House. The Trump administration has fired dozens of NIST employees that worked on CHIPS initiatives, according to a NextGov report. The president has also publicly called for an end to the law and its funding. "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," Trump said in a joint address to Congress March 4. The Biden administration rushed to finalize many of the CHIPS contracts during the former president's final weeks in office in a bid to safeguard the funding. However, it remains unclear how much of that money is actually in the hands of awardees. Companies are eligible to receive funds as their respective projects achieve certain milestones, many of which have yet to occur. Lutnick noted during the hearing Wednesday that the department is "planning to distribute money only if we get much more building in America." Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon told Lutnick during the hearing that he worries renegotiating previously finalized contracts could slow down project timelines and unsettle chipmakers that now find the status of their funding in jeopardy. Oregon is home to multiple projects that are set to receive CHIPS funding, including $1.86 billion for Intel's campus in Hillsboro. "To some degree you may be able to strike a better bargain, but at some point it doesn't become a better bargain and we reduce the acceleration of our re-energizing [of] the chip industry," Merkley said. Congressional Republicans are looking to pass a Senate version of the funding bill and send it to President Trump by July 4. Recommended Reading Tracking CHIPS and Science Act awards
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Tonganoxie man seriously injured in rollover crash
LEAVENWORTH (KSNT) – A 64-year-old Tonganoxie man was seriously injured in a rollover crash in Leavenworth County on Monday. Around 3 p.m., the 64-year-old man was driving a 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee east on I-70 when he made an evasive maneuver, according to the Kansas Highway Patrol (KHP). The driver left the road to the right, hit a metal guard and rolled over. $1.9 billion CHIPS grant denied for Kansas The man was taken to an area hospital for treatment of his injuries. The KHP reported he was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash. For more local news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
