Uncle Sam shouldn't own Intel stock

The problem here isn't that the government gets involved in businesses. That has always been something they do.

The problem is that these days they do it capriciously, without any sort of plan or intention.

The government played a foundational role in supporting the early stage research that enabled companies like Intel to emerge. Underwriting that sort of long-term investment that wouldn't easily attract commercial capital is a great place for them to be.

Meanwhile, is it even the case that the American chip industry is declining? Apple, Nvidia, and Google all have significant chip manufacturing operations. And this isn't an industry I even follow particularly closesly.

Which American companies manufacture chips on the latest node? Certainly not Texas Instruments, Global Foundries and one might even argue Intel, compared to Samsung and TSMC. It is a matter of national security that Intel not fail.

It is a matter of national security that state-of-the-art fabs exist within the nation and that the expertise to operate them also exists within the nation.

As you point out, it is questionable whether Intel has either of these.

It might be argued that it is critical to national security that Intel be replaced by HP. Or Nvidia. Or Sun, or Motorola, or Micron, or TI, or...

What's that you say? Most of those companies had their chance and failed? None of those companies are really in the game?

Why among all the list of failed or current fab owners is it so important that Intel be declared sacred?

Why not recognize that Intel is getting its clock cleaned by a company that doesn't design chips? Why not look outside of the chip design industry to save the chip fab industry?