Trump Mischaracterizes the CHIPS Act as Requiring Transgender Executives

During a July 15 speech at the U.S. Army War College in Pennsylvania, former President Donald Trump asserted that the bipartisan CHIPS Act obliges companies receiving federal funding to hire transgender executives. The claim was presented as a criticism of the law’s implementation.

The Advocate

The CHIPS and Science Act, enacted in 2022, provides financial incentives to boost domestic semiconductor production and strengthen the U.S. STEM workforce. The statute contains no reference to “transgender” or any hiring quota based on gender identity. Its provisions focus on research funding, tax credits, and supply-chain security, without prescribing personnel composition for recipient firms.

The Advocate

White House spokesman Kush Desai responded that the Biden administration has incorporated “DEI priorities” into the program through non-statutory administrative conditions, such as construction-job goals for women and on-site daycare. Desai did not cite any transgender-specific requirement and declined to provide concrete examples of the policies he referenced.

The Advocate

Los Angeles Times columnist Michael Hiltzik noted that the Trump administration itself awarded roughly $5 billion under the CHIPS program, underscoring that the funding mechanism operates independently of any alleged hiring mandates.

The Advocate

• “We had this ridiculous CHIPS Act where you give billions of dollars to a company, and they didn't even know what the hell to do with it. You give them billions of dollars, they say they're going to build, nobody knew what to do with it,” — Donald Trump, president

The Advocate

The episode illustrates how political rhetoric can distort the content of legislation, prompting fact-checking and official clarification.

The Advocate