Democrats Split on Semiconductor Exports to China as Trump Policy Under Scrutiny

U.S. House Select Committee on China Democrats see a policy shift: Rep. Ro Khanna now considers selling older-generation H200 Hopper GPUs to China, differing from his predecessor's stance. He criticized President Trump's inconsistent policies, which Khanna argues are weakening Taiwan's security. Khanna stated the U.S. should not export Rubin or Blackwell-class chips to China, but once the U.S. maintains a two-to-three-year technological lead, selling older chips for general industry use is acceptable. The H200, part of the Hopper architecture, was released in 2024, preceding Blackwell and Rubin, expected later this year. The committee, traditionally bipartisan, is experiencing new political tension as members more directly scrutinize the administration's Taiwan policy. Khanna's predecessor, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, introduced legislation last year aiming to block semiconductor exports to China. A Republican colleague, Rep. John Moolenaar, previously criticized Trump's allowance of H200 sales to China. As of publication, NVIDIA has not commented.