U.S. to review supply chains

President Joe Biden signed an executive order on Wednesday to review U.S. supply chains. He said the order is meant to ensure the country doesn’t find itself in a preventable crisis over a shortage of critical items. He cited shortages of gowns and gloves for frontline healthcare workers during the pandemic and a shortage of semiconductors that power everything from cars to phones to military equipment.

Why is the president concerned? The United States has become more and more reliant on imports of essential items, and the president said the country must become more self-reliant in certain areas. Without mentioning China by name, the president said the United States should reduce its reliance on countries that don’t share our values.

Dig deeper: Read Rachel Lynn Aldrich’s report in The Sift about the United Kingdom banning the Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei from its 5G networks.