Finding out that one of the last things Biden chose to do while in office was to block the Nippon/US Steel Deal gives me “Buddy I hope you find your dad,” vibes. It may feel blindly optimistic that someone domestic will buy US Steel. Still, the intentions behind the purchase won’t make as much sense as the Nippon deal because as an elected official who got to explore the WV Nippon (former Standard Steel) Plant, I don’t foresee anyone else who has the billions of dollars necessary to invest in the plants that need investing in.

The sad part about this deal is that not one of the federal officials seemed to talk or care about what the residents and local officials thought about the potential merger. Sitting at the table from day one with Nippon officials local mayors and council say at the table asking questions. Nippon pledged to lower the emissions, be open to community benefits agreements, move their HQ from Houston to Pittsburgh, and invest billions of dollars into plants that have been neglected for almost a decade.

Kudos to federal officials for blocking a deal that could’ve taken US Steel, one of the best in the country, to one of the best steel manufacturers in the world. We won’t immediately see the effects of the decision but Biden will forever have this as a part of his legacy. This could be the decision that potentially shutters the Edgar Thomson Works Plant and the Clairton Works Plant which would drastically create a tax conundrum for the communities that they sit in that are already dealing with blight from the first time that US Steel shuttered their doors before I was born.

It all feels full circle. Although US Steel which sits in local poor neighborhoods, builds parks, helps with Christmas initiatives, and literally donated funds for a roof for a local borough building. These communities will have to rebuild once again with the threat of their biggest taxpaying company being sold to a domestic company with no intention of keeping these plants open. We can’t oversee the pollution but we have been trying to mend collaborations and partnerships by asking the right questions to hold them accountable and having the potential buyer at the table was a great start. The next buyer doesn’t have to offer us a say. As a professional optimist, I hope someone with great intentions throws them a life raft but I question it wholeheartedly.

The deal being blocked was pure politics because why wouldn’t you want your ally to help you succeed? If I was Japan I would question if we were actually allies because friends help other friends that need a helping hand. Japan wanted to expand its portfolio to the US because its population was declining which meant less need for steel manufacturing this just seemed like a match made in heaven but apparently it was a collaboration that could never be because everyone is afraid of extending an olive branch when it comes to allyship in foreign affairs unless it involves war.