The Intel stake may be Trump’s corrupt spin on industrial policy

The Donald Trump administration’s announced purchase of just under 10% of Intel, the largest semiconductor company in the US, isn’t likely to be a one-off: More investments in other semiconductor firms are apparently to come. And the decision follows a Defense Department deal that made it the largest shareholder in a rare-earth mining and processing firm.

These actions have opened an overdue debate about whether and when the government should use investment dollars as a way to regulate. Commentators have sensibly raised hard questions about whether taking a stake in Intel effectively serves US interests. But the Trump administration’s move raises bigger issues.