Is the Arizona Tech Oasis a Mirage?

Taiwan’s pushback on chip production underscores continued U.S. dependency.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) CEO C.C. Wei, accompanied by U.S. President Donald Trump, speaks at the White House in Washington, D.C., on March 3. October 10, 2025, 9:28 AM Comment icon View Comments ( )

Arizona’s desert is now home to some of the world’s most advanced semiconductor plants, hailed as proof that the United States has clawed back control over the technologies of the future. Politicians and pundits celebrated the arrival of the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) in Phoenix as a triumph of industrial policy, a sign that Washington can still bend globalization to its will. Ribbon-cuttings and glowing headlines told a sto

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