{"id":104895,"date":"2022-10-23T17:46:03","date_gmt":"2022-10-23T21:46:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/?p=104895"},"modified":"2022-10-23T17:46:08","modified_gmt":"2022-10-23T21:46:08","slug":"the-daily-gouge-archive-wednesday-october-19th-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/?p=104895","title":{"rendered":"The Daily Gouge Archive, Wednesday, October 19th, 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s Wednesday, October 19th, 2022…but before we begin, does anyone have a list of politicians and bureaucrats who hold shares in Intel?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Intel\u2019s Multi-Billion Bait And Switch<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/h1>\n

The chip manufacturer cheered on a $76 billion subsidy package for the industry, then announced capital spending cuts and mass layoffs while maintaining payouts to shareholders<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/h3>\n

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“Just a couple of months after Intel\u2019s\u00a0multi-million dollar lobbying effort<\/a><\/em><\/span>\u00a0succeeded in winning microchip companies billions of dollars in no-strings-attached corporate subsidies, Intel is reportedly planning to lay off thousands of workers<\/em><\/span>.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>The potential layoffs come only weeks after the company\u00a0announced a shareholder dividend<\/a><\/em><\/span>\u00a0at the same rate as the previous few quarters \u2014 amounting to a total of about\u00a0$6 billion<\/a><\/em><\/span>\u00a0in annual dividends.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The sequence of events confirms warnings about the so-called CHIPS Act from a vanishingly small number of critics who cautioned that without changes, the legislation would let companies use the money to finance payouts to wealthy investors, and would not obligate<\/em><\/span> the companies to expand their investments in domestic jobs.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

And yet, those critics were ignored by politicians and pundits of both parties eager to shovel federal money to a handful of powerful tech companies. Indeed, when Sen. Bernie Sanders (Ind.-Vt.)\u00a0attempted to<\/a>\u00a0attach conditions to those subsidies<\/a><\/em><\/span>\u00a0\u2014 including a ban on stock buybacks, a cap on executive pay, a government equity stake, and union neutrality provisions \u2014 he was thwarted by Democratic leaders.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

At the time, Democrats blocking Sanders\u2019 initiative were bolstered by Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, who insisted that if the legislation did not pass immediately<\/em><\/span>, the company could\u00a0could move factories overseas<\/a><\/em><\/span>\u00a0and<\/em><\/span> hold up already-planned investments. When lawmakers ultimately passed the bill in July, Intel abruptly began changing its rhetoric about new domestic investments: That very same day<\/em><\/span>, the company\u00a0announced it was cutting back on capital spending<\/a><\/em><\/span>\u00a0by billions of dollars, but still intended<\/em><\/span> to issue a \u201cstrong and growing dividend\u201d for shareholders.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The Biden administration has not yet announced which companies will be receiving the CHIPS Act subsidies, and for what projects. Before the legislation passed, Intel\u00a0was expected<\/a><\/em><\/span>\u00a0to be a primary beneficiary of the subsidies<\/span><\/strong><\/span>…”<\/p>\n

If Intel gets a dime<\/em><\/span> of that money, you’ll know the First Crime Family is among its shareholders.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Now, here’s a somewhat rushed installment of\u00a0The Gouge<\/em>!<\/strong><\/p>\n

First up,\u00a0NRO<\/em>‘s Isaac Schorr tells us…<\/strong><\/p>\n

Independent Women Swing Hard Toward GOP Despite Democrats\u2019 Abortion Push<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/h1>\n

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“Republicans made massive gains with independent women in recent weeks as Democrats ramped up their messaging on abortion ahead of the midterm elections.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Forty-nine percent of voters plan to vote for the Republican nominee to represent their House district while 45 percent said they\u2019d back their Democratic opponent, according to a\u00a0New York Times<\/em>\/Siena College\u00a0poll released Monday<\/a><\/em><\/span>.<\/span> Of particular note was a 32 point swing among independent women<\/em><\/span> toward the GOP. In September\u2019s iteration of the poll, Democrats boasted a 14 point lead among that demographic, but\u00a0by October<\/a><\/em><\/span>, Republicans held an 18 point advantage.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

While Democratic officials and progressive commentators had suggested that the Supreme Court\u2019s overturning of\u00a0Roe v. Wade\u00a0<\/em>might lessen the expected electoral blow of the midterms, the swing toward the GOP among independent women \u2014 the group most heavily targeted by Democratic strategists \u2014 suggests that their focus on abortion might be to their own detriment<\/em><\/span>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

In a TV segment last month, Republican operative Matt Gorman was rebuked by his fellow panelists for suggesting that abortion \u201cis not in the top four of issues.\u201d<\/strong><\/span>…”<\/p>\n

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WATCH: @mattsgorman<\/a> tells the panel abortion “is not in the top four of issues.” @Yamiche<\/a> and @clairecmc<\/a> fiercely disagree.@Yamiche<\/a>: “Abortion comes up 90% of the time” on the campaign trail.@clairecmc<\/a>: It “infuriates women when they hear that.” pic.twitter.com\/MR8jHQAnyz<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) September 11, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n