SAYING THE QUIET PART OUTLOUD
GET CAUGHT AND BACKPEDAL AS FAST AS YOU CAN
Annie Grayer and Gregory Krieg, CNN
Sat, November 2, 2024
House Speaker Mike Johnson might have put a significant dent in the reelection hopes of one of the GOP’s most vulnerable congressional incumbents on Friday and later backtracked comments where he said he would consider repealing the CHIPS Act.
Earlier in the day at a campaign stop in Syracuse, New York, Johnson had told reporters that Republicans “probably will” try to repeal the semiconductor chip manufacturing package if they control Congress and former President Donald Trump wins the White House. The legislation is poised to bring a $100 billion microchip manufacturing center to the area where Johnson was campaigning with GOP Rep. Brandon Williams.
“As I have further explained and clarified, I fully support Micron coming to Central NY, and the CHIPS Act is not on the agenda for repeal,” Johnson lat er said in a statement. “To the contrary, there could be legislation to further streamline and improve the primary purpose of the bill—to eliminate its costly regulations and Green New Deal requirements.”
At the campaign event, Williams – who is facing a tough challenge from Democratic state Sen. John Mannion – had stepped in to say he would “remind (Johnson) night and day how important the CHIPS Act is” as Micron prepares to break ground on a plant in New York.
Williams said in a statement later Friday that he “spoke privately with the Speaker immediately after the event. He apologized profusely, saying he misheard the question.”
The CHIPS and Science Act was passed in 2022 and will invest more than $200 billion over a five-year period to help the US regain a leading position in semiconductor chip manufacturing. The new funding was intended to help companies bring chip manufacturing back to the US and, as a result, help lower costs and prevent supply chain disruptions.
Earlier Friday, Johnson was asked by a reporter from Citrus TV News, “The former president has said that he doesn’t support the CHIPS and Sciences Act. You voted against it. If you have a Republican majority in Congress and Trump in the White House, will you guys try to repeal that law?”
“I expect that we probably will, but we haven’t developed that part of the agenda yet,” Johnson said. “We’ve got to get over the election first and that’s why we’re so happy to be in New York’s 22nd. Brandon Williams is one of the most important races in the country and that’s why Democrats are spending millions and millions and millions of dollars to try to unseat him.”
After Williams defended the CHIPS Act, which he described as “hugely impactful here,” Johnson then said, “When you have an issue where consensus is necessary to be built, ‘cause different states have different perspectives on these things, you have to have somebody who is a strong advocate for that legislation. People listen to Brandon Williams. If that is an important thing for your district, you need this guy there to make that case.”
Johnson later said his objection to the CHIPS Act was related to other programs that were included in the bill. “We’re going to support chip manufacturing, we do not support the Green New Deal. When you separate those two things, that makes it a whole lot simpler,” he said.
Democrats immediately pounced on the gaffe. The “Kamala HQ” account on X posted video of the exchange, and Mannion commented, “Trump wants to dismantle, Johnson is in lock-step, Williams calls it corporate welfare.”
“In Congress, I’ll defend CHIPS and Science and keep the investments coming home to (Central New York) and the Mohawk Valley,” Mannion wrote.
Williams was not yet in Congress when the bill passed but criticized it on the campaign trail in 2022.
Harris Blasts Mike Johnson for Spilling GOP Plan to Repeal Bipartisan Jobs Bill
Althea Legaspi and Ryan Bort
Sat, November 2, 2024
Vice President Kamala Harris blasted House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Saturday following his comment that the GOP may look to repeal the CHIPS and Science Act if they maintain control of Congress.
“I want to speak to the comments that have been recently made by the speaker of the House,” Harris told reporters in Milwaukee, according to NBC News. “It is just further evidence of everything that I’ve actually been talking about for months now, about [former President Donald] Trump’s intention to implement Project 2025.”
Johnson has spent the week before the election revealing his intention to take an axe to popular legislation next year. On Friday, while attending an event in New York with Rep. Brandon Williams (R-N.Y.) whose seat is vulnerable, Johnson was asked whether Republicans will seek to repeal the CHIPS Act, a bipartisan manufacturing and jobs bill President Joe Biden signed into law in 2022.
“I expect that we probably will,” Johnson said.
This put Williams in the awkward position to disagree with Johnson while standing beside him. “The CHIPS Act is hugely impactful here,” Williams said, vowing to “remind” Johnson “night and day” about the law’s significance.
Later, Johnson walked back his comment, saying in a statement: “As I have further explained and clarified, I fully support Micron coming to Central NY, and the CHIPS Act is not on the agenda for repeal. To the contrary, there could be legislation to further streamline and improve the primary purpose of the bill — to eliminate its costly regulations and Green New Deal requirements.”
Williams said in a statement that Johnson apologized and said “he misheard the question.”
Enacted in 2022, the CHIPS and Science Act, “establishes and provides funding for the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) for America Fund to carry out activities relating to the creation of incentives to produce semiconductors in the United States,” per the summary. The Commerce Department notes that the ACT has led to $53 billion in spending on semiconductors, $30 billion in private sector investments, 16 new semiconductor plants, and added more than 100,000 new manufacturing and construction jobs to date.
Earlier this week, Johnson said he wants take down the Affordable Care Act, the Obama-era health care law Trump and Republicans have been trying to repeal for years — without any plan to replace it. “No Obamacare,” Johnson said. “The ACA is so deeply ingrained, we need massive reform to make this work, and we got a lot of ideas on how to do that.”
Trump tried to distance himself from Johnson’s comments, which the House Speaker later tried to walk back by claiming that when he said the ACA was “deeply ingrained” he meant it should stay that way.
Democrats have been hitting Johnson and Republicans for their plans to take down both popular pieces of legislation. On Saturday, Harris continued to rail on Johnson’s comment about potentially repealing the CHIPS Act, saying that he only walked-back his initial statement “because it’s not popular, and their agenda is not popular.”
HuffPost
“And that’s why people are showing up by the thousands, tens of thousands, to talk about an agenda that actually is focused on lifting them up,” she added.
Harris slams Speaker Johnson’s comments about CHIPS Act
Juliann Ventura
Sat, November 2, 2024
Vice President Harris took a swipe at Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) Friday evening, after Johnson said on the campaign trail that he would “probably” move to try to repeal the CHIPS and Science Act.
The Republican leader later backtracked on the comment, clarifying in a joint statement with Rep. Brandon Williams (R-N.Y.) that he “misheard” the question.
“Let’s be clear why he walked it back. Because it’s not popular,” Harris told reporters Friday in Milwaukee. “And their agenda is not popular.”
The Harris campaign also released a statement Friday slamming the Speaker’s comments.
Harris-Walz rapid response director Ammar Moussa also released a statement on Friday, slamming the speaker’s comments.
“His and Donald Trump’s closing argument is clear: cut billions in key investments, ship American jobs overseas, and end the Affordable Care Act,” Ammar Moussa, Harris’s rapid response director, said in the statement.
“Vice President Harris is running to bring manufacturing jobs back to America and make us competitive globally, Moussa added. “The only way to guarantee these Republicans never get a chance to repeal these laws that are creating jobs and saving Americans money is to elect her President.”
The comments come after Williams, a vulnerable member this election cycle, seemed to awkwardly contradict Johnson when asked about the legislation — signed into law by President Biden in 2022 — which seeks to strengthen domestic chip manufacturing and finance scientific research to boost U.S. competitiveness.
“No. Obviously, the CHIPS Act is hugely impactful here,” Williams said during the event. “My job is to keep lobbying on my side. That’s why I crossed the aisle and supported many things against leadership. But that’s our partnership, that’s how we’re going to get through it.”
Despite the “clarification,” Democrats have been quick to feature Johnson’s comments into their campaign messaging.
Harris, according to reporting from The Associated Press, has also criticized the Louisiana Republican for suggesting the GOP could cut semiconductor manufacturing investments.
“It is my plan and intention to continue to invest in American manufacturing,” Harris told reporters in Milwaukee, per the AP.
The Hill has contacted Johnson’s press office for comment.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Speaker of the House ‘apologized profusely’ for saying he’d ‘probably will’ try to repeal CHIPS Act
Andrew Donovan
Fri, November 1, 2024
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — Congressman Brandon Williams says Speaker of the House Mike Johnson “apologized profusely” for comments threatening the landmark legislation credited with attracting Micron to Central New York.
When asked if he, President Donald Trump and a Republican majority in Congress would repeal the CHIPS and Science Act, Johnson said: “I expect that we probably will.”
Standing next to the speaker, Congressman Brandon Williams shared a different position, saying he would not vote in favor of repealing the law.
Williams said: “Obviously, the CHIPS Act is hugely impactful here and my job is to keep lobbying on my side.”
Putting his hand on Johnson’s back, Williams said, “I will remind him night and day how important the CHIPS Act is and that we break ground on Micron.”
“People listen to Brandon Williams,” said Speaker Johnson. “If that’s an important thing for your district, you need this guy there to make that case.”
Johnson’s comments were made when he took questions from reporters after speaking alongside Congressman Williams at a rally of about 200 supporters at the CNY Regional Market.
Within an hour, the Williams campaign was working to clarify the Speaker’s comments.
Congressman Brandon Williams said, “I spoke privately with the Speaker immediately after the event. He apologized profusely, saying he misheard the question. He clarified his comments on the spot and I trust local media to play his full comments on supporting repatriation of chips manufacturing to America.”
At the event, Johnson said, “It is so important for national security, and onshoring chips manufacturing here, this district being central to that — we want to do that. You’ll have 100% agreement by President Trump and all the Republicans in Congress. What we were opposed to in that bill was that it had too much crammed into it.”
In a written statement after, forwarded by the Williams Campaign, Speaker Mike Johnson said, “As I have further explained and clarified, I fully support Micron coming to Central NY, and the CHIPS Act is not on the agenda for repeal. To the contrary, there could be legislation to further streamline and improve the primary purpose of the bill-to eliminate its costly regulations and Green New Deal requirements.”
Knowing former President Donald Trump also trashed the CHIPS legislation on a podcast last week, Governor Kathy Hochul said she’d defend the project regardless of what happens on Election Day.
“Every other state wanted Micron,” said the governor, “we secured what is now the largest private sector investment in American history, going on right now and he dare say that it’s a bad program. So is he basically saying he’d rather semiconductor chips be manufactured in China?”
Hochul said: “If he becomes the president, which I do not foresee at all, that’s my prediction, do not foresee that, I will work with anyone to make sure he does not stop this critical project.”
Annie Grayer and Gregory Krieg, CNN
Sat, November 2, 2024
House Speaker Mike Johnson might have put a significant dent in the reelection hopes of one of the GOP’s most vulnerable congressional incumbents on Friday and later backtracked comments where he said he would consider repealing the CHIPS Act.
Earlier in the day at a campaign stop in Syracuse, New York, Johnson had told reporters that Republicans “probably will” try to repeal the semiconductor chip manufacturing package if they control Congress and former President Donald Trump wins the White House. The legislation is poised to bring a $100 billion microchip manufacturing center to the area where Johnson was campaigning with GOP Rep. Brandon Williams.
“As I have further explained and clarified, I fully support Micron coming to Central NY, and the CHIPS Act is not on the agenda for repeal,” Johnson lat er said in a statement. “To the contrary, there could be legislation to further streamline and improve the primary purpose of the bill—to eliminate its costly regulations and Green New Deal requirements.”
At the campaign event, Williams – who is facing a tough challenge from Democratic state Sen. John Mannion – had stepped in to say he would “remind (Johnson) night and day how important the CHIPS Act is” as Micron prepares to break ground on a plant in New York.
Williams said in a statement later Friday that he “spoke privately with the Speaker immediately after the event. He apologized profusely, saying he misheard the question.”
The CHIPS and Science Act was passed in 2022 and will invest more than $200 billion over a five-year period to help the US regain a leading position in semiconductor chip manufacturing. The new funding was intended to help companies bring chip manufacturing back to the US and, as a result, help lower costs and prevent supply chain disruptions.
Earlier Friday, Johnson was asked by a reporter from Citrus TV News, “The former president has said that he doesn’t support the CHIPS and Sciences Act. You voted against it. If you have a Republican majority in Congress and Trump in the White House, will you guys try to repeal that law?”
“I expect that we probably will, but we haven’t developed that part of the agenda yet,” Johnson said. “We’ve got to get over the election first and that’s why we’re so happy to be in New York’s 22nd. Brandon Williams is one of the most important races in the country and that’s why Democrats are spending millions and millions and millions of dollars to try to unseat him.”
After Williams defended the CHIPS Act, which he described as “hugely impactful here,” Johnson then said, “When you have an issue where consensus is necessary to be built, ‘cause different states have different perspectives on these things, you have to have somebody who is a strong advocate for that legislation. People listen to Brandon Williams. If that is an important thing for your district, you need this guy there to make that case.”
Johnson later said his objection to the CHIPS Act was related to other programs that were included in the bill. “We’re going to support chip manufacturing, we do not support the Green New Deal. When you separate those two things, that makes it a whole lot simpler,” he said.
Democrats immediately pounced on the gaffe. The “Kamala HQ” account on X posted video of the exchange, and Mannion commented, “Trump wants to dismantle, Johnson is in lock-step, Williams calls it corporate welfare.”
“In Congress, I’ll defend CHIPS and Science and keep the investments coming home to (Central New York) and the Mohawk Valley,” Mannion wrote.
Williams was not yet in Congress when the bill passed but criticized it on the campaign trail in 2022.
Harris Blasts Mike Johnson for Spilling GOP Plan to Repeal Bipartisan Jobs Bill
Althea Legaspi and Ryan Bort
Sat, November 2, 2024
Vice President Kamala Harris blasted House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Saturday following his comment that the GOP may look to repeal the CHIPS and Science Act if they maintain control of Congress.
“I want to speak to the comments that have been recently made by the speaker of the House,” Harris told reporters in Milwaukee, according to NBC News. “It is just further evidence of everything that I’ve actually been talking about for months now, about [former President Donald] Trump’s intention to implement Project 2025.”
Johnson has spent the week before the election revealing his intention to take an axe to popular legislation next year. On Friday, while attending an event in New York with Rep. Brandon Williams (R-N.Y.) whose seat is vulnerable, Johnson was asked whether Republicans will seek to repeal the CHIPS Act, a bipartisan manufacturing and jobs bill President Joe Biden signed into law in 2022.
“I expect that we probably will,” Johnson said.
This put Williams in the awkward position to disagree with Johnson while standing beside him. “The CHIPS Act is hugely impactful here,” Williams said, vowing to “remind” Johnson “night and day” about the law’s significance.
Later, Johnson walked back his comment, saying in a statement: “As I have further explained and clarified, I fully support Micron coming to Central NY, and the CHIPS Act is not on the agenda for repeal. To the contrary, there could be legislation to further streamline and improve the primary purpose of the bill — to eliminate its costly regulations and Green New Deal requirements.”
Williams said in a statement that Johnson apologized and said “he misheard the question.”
Enacted in 2022, the CHIPS and Science Act, “establishes and provides funding for the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) for America Fund to carry out activities relating to the creation of incentives to produce semiconductors in the United States,” per the summary. The Commerce Department notes that the ACT has led to $53 billion in spending on semiconductors, $30 billion in private sector investments, 16 new semiconductor plants, and added more than 100,000 new manufacturing and construction jobs to date.
Earlier this week, Johnson said he wants take down the Affordable Care Act, the Obama-era health care law Trump and Republicans have been trying to repeal for years — without any plan to replace it. “No Obamacare,” Johnson said. “The ACA is so deeply ingrained, we need massive reform to make this work, and we got a lot of ideas on how to do that.”
Trump tried to distance himself from Johnson’s comments, which the House Speaker later tried to walk back by claiming that when he said the ACA was “deeply ingrained” he meant it should stay that way.
Democrats have been hitting Johnson and Republicans for their plans to take down both popular pieces of legislation. On Saturday, Harris continued to rail on Johnson’s comment about potentially repealing the CHIPS Act, saying that he only walked-back his initial statement “because it’s not popular, and their agenda is not popular.”
HuffPost
“And that’s why people are showing up by the thousands, tens of thousands, to talk about an agenda that actually is focused on lifting them up,” she added.
Harris slams Speaker Johnson’s comments about CHIPS Act
Juliann Ventura
Sat, November 2, 2024
Vice President Harris took a swipe at Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) Friday evening, after Johnson said on the campaign trail that he would “probably” move to try to repeal the CHIPS and Science Act.
The Republican leader later backtracked on the comment, clarifying in a joint statement with Rep. Brandon Williams (R-N.Y.) that he “misheard” the question.
“Let’s be clear why he walked it back. Because it’s not popular,” Harris told reporters Friday in Milwaukee. “And their agenda is not popular.”
The Harris campaign also released a statement Friday slamming the Speaker’s comments.
Harris-Walz rapid response director Ammar Moussa also released a statement on Friday, slamming the speaker’s comments.
“His and Donald Trump’s closing argument is clear: cut billions in key investments, ship American jobs overseas, and end the Affordable Care Act,” Ammar Moussa, Harris’s rapid response director, said in the statement.
“Vice President Harris is running to bring manufacturing jobs back to America and make us competitive globally, Moussa added. “The only way to guarantee these Republicans never get a chance to repeal these laws that are creating jobs and saving Americans money is to elect her President.”
The comments come after Williams, a vulnerable member this election cycle, seemed to awkwardly contradict Johnson when asked about the legislation — signed into law by President Biden in 2022 — which seeks to strengthen domestic chip manufacturing and finance scientific research to boost U.S. competitiveness.
“No. Obviously, the CHIPS Act is hugely impactful here,” Williams said during the event. “My job is to keep lobbying on my side. That’s why I crossed the aisle and supported many things against leadership. But that’s our partnership, that’s how we’re going to get through it.”
Despite the “clarification,” Democrats have been quick to feature Johnson’s comments into their campaign messaging.
Harris, according to reporting from The Associated Press, has also criticized the Louisiana Republican for suggesting the GOP could cut semiconductor manufacturing investments.
“It is my plan and intention to continue to invest in American manufacturing,” Harris told reporters in Milwaukee, per the AP.
The Hill has contacted Johnson’s press office for comment.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Speaker of the House ‘apologized profusely’ for saying he’d ‘probably will’ try to repeal CHIPS Act
Andrew Donovan
Fri, November 1, 2024
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — Congressman Brandon Williams says Speaker of the House Mike Johnson “apologized profusely” for comments threatening the landmark legislation credited with attracting Micron to Central New York.
When asked if he, President Donald Trump and a Republican majority in Congress would repeal the CHIPS and Science Act, Johnson said: “I expect that we probably will.”
Standing next to the speaker, Congressman Brandon Williams shared a different position, saying he would not vote in favor of repealing the law.
Williams said: “Obviously, the CHIPS Act is hugely impactful here and my job is to keep lobbying on my side.”
Putting his hand on Johnson’s back, Williams said, “I will remind him night and day how important the CHIPS Act is and that we break ground on Micron.”
“People listen to Brandon Williams,” said Speaker Johnson. “If that’s an important thing for your district, you need this guy there to make that case.”
Johnson’s comments were made when he took questions from reporters after speaking alongside Congressman Williams at a rally of about 200 supporters at the CNY Regional Market.
Within an hour, the Williams campaign was working to clarify the Speaker’s comments.
Congressman Brandon Williams said, “I spoke privately with the Speaker immediately after the event. He apologized profusely, saying he misheard the question. He clarified his comments on the spot and I trust local media to play his full comments on supporting repatriation of chips manufacturing to America.”
At the event, Johnson said, “It is so important for national security, and onshoring chips manufacturing here, this district being central to that — we want to do that. You’ll have 100% agreement by President Trump and all the Republicans in Congress. What we were opposed to in that bill was that it had too much crammed into it.”
In a written statement after, forwarded by the Williams Campaign, Speaker Mike Johnson said, “As I have further explained and clarified, I fully support Micron coming to Central NY, and the CHIPS Act is not on the agenda for repeal. To the contrary, there could be legislation to further streamline and improve the primary purpose of the bill-to eliminate its costly regulations and Green New Deal requirements.”
Knowing former President Donald Trump also trashed the CHIPS legislation on a podcast last week, Governor Kathy Hochul said she’d defend the project regardless of what happens on Election Day.
“Every other state wanted Micron,” said the governor, “we secured what is now the largest private sector investment in American history, going on right now and he dare say that it’s a bad program. So is he basically saying he’d rather semiconductor chips be manufactured in China?”
Hochul said: “If he becomes the president, which I do not foresee at all, that’s my prediction, do not foresee that, I will work with anyone to make sure he does not stop this critical project.”
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