The Trump administration is investing in publicly traded companies – and it's sending stocks soaring higher.

Under President Donald Trump, the U.S. government has taken equity stakes in companies including Intel ( INTC ), MP Materials ( MP ), Lithium Americas ( LAC ) and Trilogy Metals ( TMQ ). Investing in public companies is an unusual move that has sparked debate on Wall Street and Capitol Hill about whether the government should be interfering in markets.

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Proponents say the equity stakes are a strategic move to support companies in industries that are critical to national security, such as rare earths mining and the production of semiconductor chips. Critics, meanwhile, say it’s a heavy-handed use of governm

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