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AI boom tests GOP’s midterm affordability pitch as price pain spreads
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Republicans are warning that their ability to deliver on lowering everyday costs, one of their core campaign promises heading into the 2026 midterms, is being tested by an AI-driven chip shortage that has spilled into consumer markets.
«When you have a big race like we have with AI, there are secondary effects that we need to be very concerned about,» former Rep. Patrick McHenry, who served as House Financial Services Committee chairman, told Fox News Digital, adding, «It is hurting Republicans.»
Tech industry reports have for months been raising alarm over a global chip shortage. In January, a report predicted that this year, 70% of the high-end memory chips produced would go toward data centers, which store AI memory, constraining all other downstream technology and driving up prices, directly undermining Republicans’ affordability agenda.
AFFORDABILITY: THE ISSUE THAT BOOSTED TRUMP AND REPUBLICANS IN 2024 DEFLATED THEM IN 2025
President Donald Trump delivers remarks at the «Winning the AI Race» AI Summit at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C., on July 23, 2025. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP)
«We see this from our handheld devices to our computers, to TVs,» McHenry, a North Carolina Republican congressman turned policy advisor, said in an interview. «Even autos are impacted, and even things such as what we think of as average everyday things that aren’t particularly high-tech, like the things we use to manicure our lawns are impacted by rising prices of chips, so there’s a lot of secondary effects across consumer goods and should be a huge concern.»
Heading into 2026, President Donald Trump framed the midterms as a referendum on cost of living, saying in a Politico interview the elections «will be about pricing.»
Historically, the party in control loses seats during the midterms. One Republican strategist told Fox News Digital that AI’s well-documented dominance over the chip market should be viewed as hurting voters’ pocketbooks. The strategist called on the three largest chip manufacturing companies to expand production, which he said would help bolster the GOP’s campaign message.
«America must win the artificial intelligence race. Companies like Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron understand that,» the strategist said. «At the same time, we can’t forget about consumer goods. Memory chip manufacturers need to increase production to boost both American AI and lower the cost of consumer goods. If they don’t, it will undoubtedly hurt Republicans politically in the midterms. How can Republicans campaign on ‘lower costs’ in 2024, but see computer and car prices rise in 2026 due to a lack of chip production?»
TRUMP TORCHES DEMS’ ‘FAKE AFFORDABILITY’ PITCH – BUT GOP PANIC IN DEEP RED STATE HINTS VOTERS AREN’T BUYING IT
The OpenAI logo appears on a mobile phone in front of a computer screen displaying ChatGPT output in Boston on March 21, 2023. (Michael Dwyer/AP)
The AI boom is increasing demand for memory chips, which are semiconductor components used in data centers, laptops and smartphones.
That chip consumption has rippled across industries. Microsoft this month attributed its rise in laptop prices to «recent increases in memory and component costs.» The smartphone market remained «under pressure,» with shipments down 6% this year, largely because of chip shortages, Counterpoint Research found.
Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, previously a car dealership owner, warned in a letter this month his state was seeing «immediate and severe» consequences of rising chip prices and that automakers have said they could begin halting assembly lines as early as next month.
While affordability has been a resounding priority for Republicans seeking to retain control in Washington, AI advancements are also a pillar of Trump’s agenda. The White House declared last year in a sweeping plan that the country was in «a race to achieve global dominance in artificial intelligence» and cited the need for a «revitalized U.S. chip industry.»
Asked about the AI-driven affordability concerns, White House spokesman Kush Desai told Fox News Digital in a statement that the White House was cognizant of the clash and balancing it with a «nuanced» economic plan, which includes Trump’s signature worldwide tariffs, which the president restructured after the Supreme Court struck down his initial plan implementing them in the name of what he said was a global economic emergency.
«The fact that semiconductor chips are absolutely critical for everything from cutting-edge AI technology to everyday consumer goods only reinforces the importance of President Trump’s push to reinvigorate America’s semiconductor industry,» Desai said. «Hundreds of billions in semiconductor manufacturing investments reflect how the private sector is enthusiastically responding to the Administration’s nuanced and multi-faceted agenda of tariffs, deregulation and tax cuts.»
KEVIN O’LEARY WARNS CHINA ‘KICKING OUR HEINIES’ IN AI RACE AS REGULATORY ROADBLOCKS STALL US
President Joe Biden speaks during a signing ceremony for the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 9, 2022. (Saul Loeb/AFP)
The strain on supply is also raising new questions about the effectiveness of the bipartisan CHIPS Act, a Biden administration bill designed to boost domestic production and prevent precisely the kind of shortage markets are now seeing.
McHenry, who specializes in fintech policy, said the CHIPS Act, a multibillion-dollar effort to pour federal subsidies and tax incentives into U.S. chip manufacturing, has been a «grave disappointment.» McHenry said both that the White House had «a lot more work» to do to address the supply shortage and that congressional reforms were another way to improve domestic chip production.
«Unfortunately for the taxpayer, they paid for the CHIPS Act the first time, and now they’re paying for it a second time with the rising price of consumer goods,» McHenry said. «Republicans need to address this on Capitol Hill. They need to clean up the CHIPS Act, so the president can deploy these tools to incentivize and grow chip manufacturing here in the United States.»
Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., who founded a successful car security company, said he sees a need for chip production expansion, tying it to consumer costs, in a statement to Fox News Digital.
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«America leads the world in AI — and we stay there by unleashing the nation’s industrial base, ramping up chip production and memory as never before and lowering the consumer costs people pay every day,» he said.
The congressman said more chips were «essential» to delivering on the GOP’s promises of «opportunity, prosperity and affordability.»
Fox News Digital reached out to representatives of Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron for comment.
artificial intelligence, midterm elections, consumers, samsung, republicans
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UNRWA fires 70 Gaza staffers amid allegations of Hamas ties, says terminations not admission of guilt
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The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) fired 70 staff members working in Gaza after long-standing claims from Israeli authorities that the agency is a collaborator with the Hamas terrorist group.
«Today, the Commissioner-General ad interim of UNRWA, Christian Saunders, took the decision to terminate the employment of 70 UNRWA staff members in Gaza with immediate effect,» UNRWA wrote in a Friday statement.
UNRWA insisted its decision was not an admission of guilt, but one taken «to mitigate safety and security risks for the refugees the Agency serves under its mandate and for UNRWA personnel and premises.»
The agency claims it has «repeatedly asked the Israeli authorities to provide information and evidence to substantiate allegations against individual UNRWA staff members in Gaza but has received no response to date.»
ISRAEL SAYS UN MISLEADS WORLD AS GAZA AID STOLEN AND DIVERTED FROM CIVILIANS
A Palestinian boy walks near a UNRWA school sheltering displaced people that was hit in an overnight Israeli strike in Gaza City on July 5, 2025. (Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters)
«The dismissal of the staff is not part of a disciplinary process and does not constitute in any way a validation of the claims made against them,» the UNRWA statement read.
The firings follow a United States Agency for International Development (USAID) investigation that referred more than 100 UNRWA staff members for suspension or dismissal.
USAID’s investigation, the results of which the agency published June 5, assessed that a number of UNRWA’s employees were deeply enmeshed in Hamas’ civil society and military operations.
The investigation results included mention of «a deputy school principal serving as an al-Qassam deputy company commander in the Ain Gallout/5th infantry battalion, a deputy school principal serving as squad leader for the Khan Younis Brigade/2nd infantry battalion» and «a teacher with expertise as a sniper for Hamas.»
Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, hand over Israeli hostages Omer Shem-Tov, Eliya Cohen and Omer Wenkert to the International Committee of the Red Cross in Nuseirat Refugee Camp, Gaza, on Feb. 22, 2025, as part of the seventh exchange under the Jan. 19 ceasefire deal. (Ashraf Amra/Anadolu)
The investigation also found numerous school teachers and principals it claimed to have participated directly in Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attacks.
Israeli authorities have long charged UNRWA with being directly tied to Hamas.
«Since October 7, evidence of numerous incidents of Hamas exploiting UNRWA infrastructure and UNRWA employees being involved in terrorist activity has been exposed. Civilians in Gaza have even stated that UNRWA is Hamas,» the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) wrote in a January web post.
Israeli soldiers stand inside an evacuated United Nations Relief and Works Agency compound in Gaza City during a media tour organized by the Israeli army on Feb. 8, 2024. (Jack Guez/AFP)
Additionally, the IDF claimed, citing intelligence findings, that «among the 12,521 UNRWA employees in the Gaza Strip, at least 1,462 (12%) are members of Hamas or other designated terrorist organizations.»
UNRWA SCHOOLS ‘HIJACKED BY HAMAS,’ WATCHDOG REPORT WARNS
Israel’s Foreign Ministry pushed back on UNRWA’s defense framing and claims that Israel had not supplied evidence of employee-Hamas collaboration.
«UNRWA’s statement on the termination of 70 employees, while blaming the victim, Israel, and without even mentioning the word ‘Hamas,’ is a cynical cover-up,» the ministry wrote in a statement shared on X.
UNRWA’s headquarters is shown in Gaza City, Gaza, on Feb. 21, 2024. (Dawoud Abo Alkas/Anadolu)
«The responsibility to purge terrorism lies solely with the UN, yet Hamas membership remains simply acceptable within UNRWA’s ranks. By harboring terrorists and letting its facilities serve as Hamas headquarters, UNRWA has become an arm of Hamas,» the statement concluded.
UNRWA, for its part, denies being an active collaborator with Hamas, but insists working with the group is an operational necessity for distributing aid in Gaza.
«UNRWA, similar to other United Nations entities, does not have police or intelligence capacities and must rely on the cooperation and assistance of Member States, including the State of Israel as the Occupying Power, to protect its operations and neutrality amid high risks in the Occupied Palestinian Territory,» the agency wrote in its Friday statement.
In April, UNRWA’s Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) announced the results of an investigation into 19 employees accused of participating in Oct. 7. UNRWA terminated 12 of the employees in January. Of the remaining seven cases, UNRWA had dismissed one, citing a lack of evidence. The remaining six cases were still under investigation as of April, according to the agency.
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President Donald Trump’s administration weighed levying terrorism-related sanctions against UNRWA in December.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has also referred to UNRWA as «a subsidiary of Hamas.»
Fox News Digital contacted UNRWA and a spokesperson for the Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations but did not immediately receive a response.
united nations, counter terrorism, israel, hamas, refugees
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Ucrania inició la mayor transformación de su ejército desde el comienzo de la invasión rusa
Ucrania está poniendo en marcha la mayor transformación de su ejército desde el inicio de la invasión a gran escala por parte de Rusia, con planes para aumentar considerablemente los salarios, introducir contratos de servicio militar de duración determinada y cubrir hasta el 50% de los puestos de infantería y asalto con extranjeros.
Las medidas, anunciadas por el presidente ucraniano, Volodimir Zelensky, tienen como objetivo convertir los salarios de la infantería en “los más altos del mundo”.
El salario medio de la infantería en primera línea aumentará hasta unos 7.000 dólares al mes (6.000 euros), con un máximo de hasta 10.000 dólares (8.640 euros), en comparación con los actuales 2.500 a 3.000 dólares (2.160 a 2.600 euros) para quienes ocupan puestos de vanguardia.
El aumento está pensado para hacer mucho más atractivos a los reclutas los puestos de mayor riesgo.
Los incentivos económicos son sólo una parte de un paquete más amplio elaborado por Mijailo Fedorov, el antiguo jefe del Ministerio de Transformación Digital de Ucrania que fue nombrado ministro de Defensa hace cinco meses.
“Obligar a Rusia a la paz” no sólo es una cuestión de armas y tecnología, afirmó Fedorov al anunciar las primeras medidas, que fueron aprobadas por el Consejo de Ministros el viernes.
“Se necesita un nuevo sistema de servicio militar, basado en el respeto a la persona, la justicia y unas normas claras”, subrayó, y señaló que se espera que las medidas consoliden la tendencia favorable para Ucrania en el campo de batalla.
En concreto, la reforma responde a una demanda de hace tiempo de los soldados y sus familias en favor de una mayor previsibilidad con la introducción de contratos de duración determinada que garantizan un descanso tras su finalización, en sustitución del actual servicio de facto indefinido.
Los contratos tendrán una duración de entre 6 y 24 meses, mientras que el periodo de exención del servicio militar será de a partir de 6 meses y dependerá de la duración y los riesgos del servicio.
Los soldados con más antigüedad podrán empezar a “abandonar gradualmente” las filas a finales de año, mientras que otros tendrán descansos significativamente más largos entre contratos.
Fedorov también anunció la puesta en marcha de un sistema digitalizado de control de misiones para garantizar una distribución justa de las tareas y una mayor transparencia en la remuneración.
Tras más de cuatro años de intensos combates y movilización a gran escala, Ucrania tiene previsto cubrir entre el 30% y el 50% de sus necesidades de tropas de infantería y asalto mediante el reclutamiento internacional, afirmó Fedorov.
Miles de combatientes extranjeros ya prestan servicio en el ejército ucraniano, con los contingentes más numerosos procedentes de Colombia y otros países latinoamericanos. Hasta ahora, el reclutamiento ha sido gestionado en gran medida por unidades individuales.
“Hay ciertas unidades en las que entre el 60% y el 80% del personal son voluntarios extranjeros. Su contribución es difícil de sobrestimar”, declaró a EFE Dmitro “Domovik”, comandante de una compañía de drones del 413.º Regimiento “Raid”.
La reforma creará nuevos mecanismos para ampliar la participación extranjera. “He dado instrucciones para que se abran significativamente más oportunidades a los voluntarios extranjeros que deseen alistarse en el Ejército ucraniano”, declaró Zelensky.
El presidente ucraniano aseguró que el país cuenta con los fondos necesarios para llevar a cabo la reforma, aunque no dio más detalles.
La reforma se considera esencial para la capacidad de Ucrania de mantener su defensa a largo plazo. Aunque sus elementos principales se vienen anticipando desde hace un tiempo, su implementación exitosa será clave para superar el escepticismo entre los soldados que llevan luchando desde los primeros días de la guerra.
El fuerte aumento salarial para la infantería también podría generar descontento entre los soldados en la retaguardia, cuyos salarios crecerán de forma más modesta, advirtió en sus redes sociales Yarina Chornoguz, voluntaria que se alistó en el ejército ya en 2020.
El salario base para la mayoría de los puestos de retaguardia aumentará de un equivalente de unos 400 a 600 euros al mes.
Los cambios, que se espera que entren en vigor este mes, no pondrán fin a la movilización obligatoria, que está previsto que continúe mientras duren las hostilidades activas.
La reforma de los centros de reclutamiento -que han sido objeto de críticas por su gestión de la movilización y conflictos con la población civil- será la siguiente fase, señaló el viernes la primera ministra Yulia Sviridenko.
Military Conflicts
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Donors from outside of Texas accounted for roughly 50% of the funds Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico received during the final stretch of the first quarter of 2026, compared to his Republican opponent, who received just about 25% of his cash from out of state.
Of the $8.5 million Talarico raised between February 12 and March 31, a period where he saw a significant uptick in donations owing to his growing national profile, approximately $4 million came from states other than Texas, according to campaign finance records reviewed by Fox News Digital. The Republican nominee, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, meanwhile, raised $640,000 out of the roughly $850,000 he brought in during that period from within Texas.
The fundraising disparity underscores the nationalization of Texas’ Senate race, with Talarico drawing major financial support from Democratic donors and executives far beyond the state he seeks to represent, even as he campaigns on Texas roots and opposition to outside special interests. The haul gives Democrats a cash advantage in what is shaping up to be one of the most competitive Senate races this cycle, while giving Republicans an opening to cast Talarico’s campaign as powered by coastal liberal donors rather than Texas voters.
Donors from New York and California, for instance, showered Talarico with more than $1.3 million in the final six weeks of quarter one, according to Federal Election Commission records.
VULNERABLE DEM SENATOR’S ‘GRASSROOTS’ CAMPAIGN POWERED BY OUT-OF-STATE CASH, MOSTLY BY COASTAL ELITES
Texas Senate candidate James Talarico urged voters to reduce meat consumption in a 2022 clip that went viral on Tuesday. (Mark Felix/Getty Images)
Talarico has made an effort to highlight his ties to Texas during his Senate campaign, touting the fact that his family has lived in the state for eight generations and criticizing the influence of out-of-state interests on Texans.
«I’ve led the fight against the billionaire mega-donors that have rigged the system against working Texas families,» Talarico’s campaign website reads. «Now, as those same billionaire mega-donors take over the federal government, we need more fighters in Washington who will take power back for working people.»
Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico addresses supporters at a rally in Houston. (F. Carter Smith/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
ACTBLUE SUES TEXAS AG KEN PAXTON, ALLEGING POLITICAL RETALIATION OVER DEMOCRATS’ FUNDRAISING
«James is proud to be the only candidate in this race not taking a dime of corporate PAC money, shattering grassroots fundraising records with donations from 246 Texas counties and the help of over 540,000 small dollar contributors — unlike John Cornyn and Ken Paxton, who have raked in millions of dollars from special interests and enriched their billionaire donors while working Texans struggle,» campaign spokesman JT Ennis told Fox News Digital when asked about out-of-state donations.
«Our campaign is bringing Democrats, Republicans and Independents together to fix this broken, corrupt political system and bring down costs for families across our state.»
Talarico accepted donations from out-of-state executives at Google, Warner Brothers, Apple, Meta, Victoria’s Secret, and other major companies between February 12 and March 31, per FEC records. The Democratic Senate hopeful has also accepted donations from lobbyists representing major corporations such as Google, AirBnB, Boeing, Novo Nordisk, Comcast, CVS and JP Morgan.
While Talarico has attracted considerable support from outside of Texas, his fundraising operation within the state has also eclipsed that of Paxton, who raised less than one-fifth as much from Texans as his Democratic opponent. Paxton, however, fought a brutal primary against Sen. John Cornyn, splitting the GOP donor base.
JAMES TALARICO ADMITS PAST COMMENTS ‘MISSED THE MARK’ WHEN CONFRONTED ON CLAIMS LIKE GOD IS ‘NON-BINARY’
James Talarico speaks during a primary event in Texas. (PJason Fochtman/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
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Beyond his campaign committee, Talarico has also benefited from Lone Star Rising PAC, a super PAC spending millions to help him win. In contrast to his campaign rhetoric, much of the cash behind the super PAC boosting Talarico’s campaign came from wealthy out-of-state donors.
Just 12% of the millions of dollars in donations collected by Lone Star Rising PAC, which the Washington Free Beacon reports is run by Talarico’s longtime friend, came from entities within Texas, according to campaign finance records.
texas, republicans elections, lobbying, fund raising, democrats senate
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