Washington business groups warned in a letter on Wednesday that “political interference” could derail Japanese steelmaker Nippon Steel's proposed takeover of U.S. Steel, which is opposed by lawmakers across the political spectrum and across presidential candidates.
“Unfortunately, there have been continued recent attempts from across the political spectrum to politicize the committee's work, allowing politics to undermine its clear and narrow statutory mandate of national security,” the business groups warned. Wednesday's Letter The letter was addressed to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who chairs the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which is reviewing the transaction.
“We are concerned that the CFIUS process is being used to advance a political agenda outside the Committee's purview, putting the U.S. economy and workers at risk. Indeed, if such political interference becomes widespread, it would severely undermine the U.S. investment climate,” wrote the groups, which include the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Global Business Alliance, the Automotive Innovation Coalition and the Japan Business Federation.
The deal is reportedly in jeopardy. Reuters reports CFIUS sent letters to Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel on Saturday saying the $15 billion acquisition carries national security risks, including an influx of cheap steel from China and a negative impact on domestic steel supplies.
Nippon Steel's vice chairman is expected to make a last-minute appeal to U.S. government officials on Wednesday to salvage the contract, the Financial Times reported. Reported.
Neither CFIUS nor Nippon Steel responded to requests for comment.
U.S. Steel President and CEO David Barritt warned last week that the company could be forced to cut jobs and move its headquarters out of Pittsburgh if the deal fell through, saying it could not make the investments Nippon Steel has pledged to make on its own.
When the deal was announced in December, lawmakers from both parties, including Pennsylvania Sens. Bob Casey (D-Pennsylvania) and John Fetterman (D-Pennsylvania), quickly condemned it as a threat to national security that would undermine U.S. industrial capacity.
Both President Biden and Vice President Harris have said they oppose the agreement, as has former President Trump, the Republican presidential nominee.
The business groups expressed concern about “political pressure” on the process, writing in the letter that “CFIUS should not become an instrument of political posturing or be transformed into industrial policy disguised as national security.”
