Liberal U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders on Wednesday threw his support behind President Donald Trump's plan to convert U.S. grants to chipmakers, including $10.9 billion for Intel, into government stakes in the companies.

Lutnick just laughed it off, indignantly pointing out that “we were just giving away the money” under the previous terms of the CHIPS Act. But the legality of any equity stake would likely be challenged by both Intel shareholders and competitors in the industry, according to the Times.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has confirmed that the Trump administration is considering taking a stake in the struggling U.S. chipmaker Intel.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told CNBC the U.S. government wants a stake in Intel in exchange for CHIPS Act grant money promised under Biden.