When the chips are down
On Tuesday, every American executive and engineer working in China’s semiconductor manufacturing industry resigned. And it was all thanks to Joe Biden, who gave those semiconductor professionals a choice: quit or lose their citizenships. This quiet coup effectively paralysed China’s semiconductor manufacturing industry overnight.
In a single stroke President Joe Biden did more damage to Chinese hegemony in their semiconductor world takeover attempt than all four years of performative sanctioning under Donald Trump. Once again Biden has outperformed the braggart ex-president by a country mile.
With Trump at the semi-helm, American semiconductor exporters had to apply for licenses. But those licenses were always approved — and usually within a month. With Biden it was one executive order and goodbye. While Trump incompetently shot himself in the foot with tariffs on Chinese imports and exports that did America more harm than good, Biden is showing the Chinese who the real boss is. Once again, when the chips are down we’re always better off ridin’ with Biden.
The underwhelming reportage of this stunning and brilliantly devastating stroke is yet another example of the President’s quiet competence failing to break through the ugly noise caused by Trump on a daily basis. While the adults in the room quietly work to save American jobs and intellectual property, all the cameras are trained on the tantrum-tossing baby screaming in terror and throwing ketchup at the wall.
In an effort to block China’s access to crucial semiconductor technology and punish them for egregious human rights abuses and other bad policies, Biden also announced onerous new export rules aimed at a “comprehensive supply cut-off” of essential semiconductor technology to China. Needless to say this move has been immediately devastating to China’s plan to push the United States and every other rival out of the semiconductor game. It also simultaneously serves as retribution for China’s appalling record on global warming, intolerance toward Taiwan and Hong Kong and civil rights abuses. As Joe Biden put it in a hot mic moment, “Don’t f*** with a Biden.”
Once again Biden has beaten Trump in every way it’s conceivable to imagine. While Trump faces a deposition for slandering the woman he raped, the President quietly goes about the business of the country. Every now and then it does us good to pause and reflect on how much better it is when a good and competent President is in charge. And, as ever, ladies and gentlemen, brothers and sisters, comrades and friends, stay safe.
Robert Harrington is an American expat living in Britain. He is a portrait painter.