Stabenow Says “Make It In America” Measures Would Be a Boon for Michigan Manufacturing

Legislation moving through Congress would give Michigan manufacturing a huge boost. The U.S. Innovation and Competition Act would encourage the government to buy more products that are produced in the United States, among other things.

It would also invest more than $50 billion in semiconductor manufacturing. Semiconductors are in high demand due to supply chains being disrupted during the pandemic. This legislation intends to make the chips in the U.S. so that there are no future shortages.  

“One [thing] is strengthening ‘Buy American’ laws, and the other is putting money into investments to make our semiconductors in America so that we are not dependent on Taiwan or China or any other place for critical parts that we need for manufacturing.” –Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)

Unlike the creation of the Jan. 6 commission, which Republicans blocked using the filibuster, this bill has broad bipartisan support.

Listen: Sen. Debbie Stabenow on Make It In America, the Jan. 6 commission and the filibuster.

U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow is a Democrat from Michigan, and a sponsor of “Make It In America” provisions of the legislation. She says this bill would do two things. “One is strengthening ‘Buy American’ laws, and the other is putting money into investments to make our semiconductors in America so that we are not dependent on Taiwan or China or any other place for critical parts that we need for manufacturing,” Stabenow says.

Stabenow says in January, Biden administration officials came to her and said they would do what they could to enact the law administratively and through executive orders. Stabenow is still pursuing this legislation. “The most important thing is if you put it into law, it can’t be changed with the next president,” she says. 

Stabenow also discusses the proposed Jan. 6 commission, which Republicans blocked in the Senate using the filibuster. “It was pretty shocking … that we can’t get bipartisan support for something as simple as an independent nonpartisan commission to look at what we all know happened,” she says. “I mean our country was attacked; our democracy was attacked.” 

“The rules don’t get ahead of what’s best for the people in Michigan.” –Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)

Stabenow points out that the filibuster is a Senate rule, not something written into the Constitution. She feels the use of the filibuster by Senate Republicans is an abuse of the rules and that Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-K.Y.), has “made it an art form.” 

“We’ve been through a pandemic that fundamentally changed people’s lives,” Stabenow says. “We’ve been hit in very profound ways and I’m not going to support allowing rules to get in the way of actually moving forward and making people’s lives better, improving the economy, getting our jobs back, and successfully winning this new clean energy race, tackling climate change, and voting rights. … The rules don’t get ahead of what’s best for the people in Michigan.” 

Web post written by Dan Netter