President Trump said Monday that a deal with chipmaker Intel is just the beginning of a push to give the U.S. government a stake in private companies.
Mr. Trump said any profit derived from the Intel stake “goes to the USA.”
“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,” Mr. Trump wrote on Truth Social. “I love seeing their stock price go up, making the USA RICHER, AND RICHER.”
Mr. Trump is taking an unusual approach to economic governance. He’s making deals that allow Uncle Sam to take an ownership stake in private businesses receiving government support — and the Treasury to pocket some of the profits.
Mr. Trump said Friday that Intel, a massive but struggling chip manufacturer, agreed to give the U.S. government a 10% equity stake in the company in return for the funding promised under President Biden’s 2022 law to bolster America’s semiconductor industry.
Mr. Trump also arranged a “golden share” for the government in U.S. Steel as part of merger talks with a Japanese buyer. The Defense Department also took a stake in MP Materials, which mines for rare earths.
Kevin Hassett, the director of the White House National Economic Council, said Monday that Mr. Trump’s effort is likely to expand to other companies as part of an effort to build a sovereign wealth fund, a mechanism used in countries like Norway, Turkey and Qatar.
The fund would invest the government’s financial assets or surplus revenue and use the proceeds to fund social and infrastructure programs or pay a dividend to American taxpayers.
Mr. Hassett, speaking on CNBC, said the U.S. has no intention of interfering in private sector operations like Intel but will look to expand its portfolio.
“This is a very, very special circumstance because of the massive amount of CHIPS Act spending that was coming in,” Mr. Hassett told “Squawk Box.” “But the president has made it clear all the way back to the campaign, he thinks that in the end, it would be great if the U.S. could start to build up a sovereign wealth fund. So I’m sure that at some point there’ll be more transactions, if not in this industry then other industries.”
The approach is raising eyebrows, with some likening it to socialism or China’s practice of intertwining its central communist government with the private sector.
Mr. Trump on Monday brushed off the idea that he’s a hypocrite, after accusing President Biden and other Democrats of being socialists.
“It’s not a shame, it’s called ‘business,’” Mr. Trump said.
He said the arrangement might be new and unusual, but “so are tariffs.”
The president said his sweeping use of tariffs is bold, yet reaping plenty of revenue and giving him leverage in negotiations with other countries.
“That’s not so normal, either,” Mr. Trump said.
Mr. Hassett said a U.S. stake in corporations is not unheard of, pointing to government backing of mortgage financing agencies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
“We’re absolutely not in the business of picking winners and losers,” Mr. Hassett said. “But this is not a thing that is unprecedented.”
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, meanwhile, is taking a victory lap over the Intel deal, saying it will make the U.S. competitive in a key sector.
“This historic agreement strengthens U.S. leadership in semiconductors, which will both grow our economy and help secure America’s technological edge,” he said.
• Jeff Mordock contributed to this story.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.