A group of 52 Congress members, including U.S. Rep. Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA), recently sent a letter to President Donald Trump congratulating him on Executive Order 13953.
The order authorizes the Department of the Interior to develop a program, under the Defense Production Act, to fund mineral processing and end the nation’s dependence on China for resources. The order’s goal is to secure the mineral supply chain, create American jobs, and eliminate unnecessary delays.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has made it clear we must secure our supply chains and end our dependence on China and other foreign bad actors for the materials we use every day,” Reschenthaler said. “I commend President Trump for taking executive action to ensure our economic prosperity and protect national security by encouraging domestic mineral processing. I remain deeply committed to working with the president to get Americans back to work, restore economic growth, and support innovation so we can maintain our economic and military strength in the decades ahead.”
The United States relies on other countries for 17 mineral resources and more than 50 percent of 29 other mineral commodities.
China is the world’s leading producer of 23 of the 35 minerals the Departments of Interior and Defense list as critical.