The U.S. Senate approved on Tuesday, with a significant majority, an ambitious plan for investment in science and technology, considered a "historic" text to economically confront China and its "authoritarian" model. This plan allocates more than $170 billion for research and development, aiming particularly to encourage companies to produce semiconductors on U.S. soil, which are currently largely manufactured in Asia. The plan received support from 68 members, while 32 opposed it.
The initiative is intended to expedite semiconductor production in the United States to address the global shortage of these essential components, and more broadly, to bolster American industry in the trade war with China. The bill specifically earmarks $52 billion over five years to encourage companies to manufacture semiconductors in the U.S., as well as to enhance research and development in this field. It also includes $1.5 billion to develop the fifth-generation network, one of the main areas of tension between China and the United States.
After its passage in the Senate, the bill must now go to a vote in the House of Representatives, with the date yet to be determined, before it can be officially adopted and sent to President Biden for approval and publication.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer warned his colleagues directly before the vote that "if we do nothing, our days as a dominant superpower could come to an end." He added, "That’s why this legislation will be remembered as one of the greatest successes achieved by Democrats and Republicans in the U.S. Senate in modern history." Schumer had previously stated that this bill "paves the way for the broadest investment in science and technology in generations."
Conversely, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell expressed regret that the plan "overlooked" measures he had hoped to include but ultimately voted in favor of the bill. McConnell stated that this plan, which "addresses key topics—from critical supply chains to intellectual property to combating espionage—will help lay our strategic foundations for decades."
The plan aims particularly at China, against which the United States is engaged in a trade war that began under former Republican President Donald Trump and has continued under his Democratic successor, contributing to rare areas where Biden has followed in Trump's footsteps.
Washington accuses Beijing of spying on the U.S. industrial sector and threatening U.S. national security. For many months, the global semiconductor shortage, primarily a result of manufacturing concentrated in Asia, has impacted numerous industries dependent on these components, particularly the automotive sector and telecommunications equipment, including smartphones, computers, and gaming devices.
The Biden administration has been seeking ways to boost the production of a range of industrial components within the United States to reduce reliance on foreign suppliers. Semiconductors include the materials themselves, most famously silicon, and the electronic components manufactured from them, such as chips that enable electronic devices to capture, process, and store data. These components are essential for entire segments of the global industry and are found in many tools used daily, including electronic and connected devices like smartphones, computers, video game consoles, cars—particularly their control panels—and aircraft, as well as data and telephone networks, among others.
