‘You built this country’: Trump, triumphant, celebrates historic US Steel-Nippon deal in Pittsburgh — it's home, for good



President Donald Trump celebrated on Friday the partnership between U.S. Steel and Japan-based Nippon Steel, telling Pennsylvania steelworkers, "We don’t want America’s future to be built with shoddy steel from Shanghai — we want it built with the strength and the pride of Pittsburgh!"

Trump marked the occasion with a rally at U.S. Steel's Mon Valley Works-Irvin Plant in West Mifflin, just outside of Pittsburgh — a venue carefully secured in advance by the U.S. Secret Service, keen not to drop the ball again in the Keystone State.

'I proclaimed a simple but crucially important principle: If you don't have steel, you don't have a country!'

"This is an incredible deal for American steelworkers, and it includes vital protections to ensure that all steelworkers will keep their jobs and all facilities in the U.S. will remain open," Trump told rally-goers, evidently proud of shepherding the companies into an agreement that wouldn’t jeopardize American control or jobs.

The president also announced that the tariff on steel would double from 25% to 50% in order to help the steel industry even more. The audience applauded loudly at the proclamation.

"When I came into office eight years ago, I proclaimed a simple but crucially important principle: If you don't have steel, you don't have a country!" he added.

Trump lauded steelworkers as "the best people," saying, "You people and others like you built this country."

“We are once again going to put Pennsylvania steel into the backbone of America,” he said at the end of his speech.

Supporters of the deal were jubilant in their comments to CBS News.

"How I feel is I can take a breath today," said third-generation steel worker Andrew Macey. "It's just wonderful."

"When you see that everything you've done for the last two years come together, it's overwhelming with emotion," said West Mifflin Mayor Chris Kelly. "So yes, I was crying. I'm not ashamed to admit it. Big men cry, and I was crying with happiness."

Background

Former President Joe Biden torpedoed a $15 billion deal for the Japanese corporation to fully purchase U.S. Steel, stressing that "a strong domestically owned and operated steel industry represents an essential national security priority and is critical for resilient supply chains."

Biden's Jan. 3 decision — announced weeks before Trump retook office and just days after the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States indicated it was unable to reach a consensus on the transaction — was condemned by both companies. They noted in a joint statement that Biden's action reflected "a clear violation of due process and the law" and relied upon a process "manipulated to advance President Biden's political agenda."

The companies subsequently took legal action, challenging Biden's order, and said of their litigation:

From the outset of the process, both Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel have engaged in good faith with all parties to underscore how the Transaction will enhance, not threaten, United States national security, including by revitalizing communities that rely on American steel, bolstering the American steel supply chain, and strengthening America’s domestic steel industry against the threat from China.

U.S. Steel leaders suggested that without an infusion of capital from Nippon Steel, the American company would have to limit its legacy blast furnace investments and embrace cheaper nonunion electric arc furnaces, reported CBS News.

The company's mixed package of threats and warnings also included the suggestion that U.S. Steel might move its headquarters out of Pittsburgh.

Change of heart

Trump, like his predecessor, was not initially convinced the sale was a good idea.

The president, who emphasized in his first term that "if you don't have steel, you don't have a country," noted a month before Biden blocked the deal, "I am totally against the once great and powerful U.S. Steel being bought by a foreign company, in this case Nippon Steel of Japan."

Trump reiterated his opposition in late January, stating, "We saved the steel industry. Now, U.S. Steel is being bought by Japan. So terrible."

'US Steel will REMAIN in America.'

Despite his months-long opposition, Trump expressed an openness on Valentine's Day to the possibility of Nippon Steel acquiring a minority stake in U.S. Steel, saying he "wouldn't mind greatly." However, he suggested that "psychologically, we can't even think about letting that happen," in reference to a full takeover.

It appears there has since been a favorable shift in psychology and terms.

A month after speaking with Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) and Sen. Dave McCormick (R) about U.S. Steel and about keeping jobs and investment in the state, Trump announced on May 23 that the deal — or some form of it — had the green light to proceed.

RELATED: Revving up America — Trump’s Nippon Steel deal puts the pedal to the metal

Photo by Jeff Swensen/Getty Images

The deal

Trump framed the deal not as an acquisition of U.S. Steel by Nippon but rather as the beginning of a "partnership" that would create at least 70,000 jobs — U.S. Steel presently employs just over 14,300 people in North America — and add $14 billion to the American economy.

"I am proud to announce that, after much consideration and negotiation, US Steel will REMAIN in America, and keep its Headquarters in the Great City of Pittsburgh," the president wrote on Truth Social. "For many years, the name, 'United States Steel' was synonymous with Greatness, and now, it will be again."

The president framed the $14 billion figure as an investment — the largest in "the History of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania" — and noted that the bulk of the investment would occur over the next 14 months.

'That's a big deal.'

While the White House told Blaze News that the "details of the deal will be announced at the appropriate time," Pennsylvania Sen. Dave McCormick, a champion of the deal, provided some insights into key elements of the arrangements with CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Tuesday.

McCormick confirmed that Nippon has agreed to invest $14 billion "into new investment into U.S. Steel, and that's going to be $2.4 billion, at least, minimum, in the Mon Valley right outside of Pittsburgh."

Gov. Shapiro confirmed at an event Thursday that, based on commitments Nippon Steel has made to him and the White House, there will be an investment of at least $2.4 billion in steelmaking in the state.

"That's a big deal, and it's something that I think we do need to celebrate," said Shapiro.

Besides the investment, there are apparently a number of assurances that Americans are still calling the shots.

RELATED: Trump signs steel, aluminum tariffs despite significant opposition

Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

'This is being extremely well received in Pennsylvania.'

Sen. McCormick noted further that "it's a national security agreement that will be signed with the U.S. government. It'll be a U.S. CEO, a U.S. majority board, and then there will be a golden share that will essentially require U.S. government approval of a number of the board members, and that will allow the United States to ensure production levels aren't cut and things like that."

Nippon Steel Vice Chairman Takahiro Mori told Reuters that trade and manufacturing capacity issues will be overseen by directors appointed by the CFIUS, effectively putting the Department of Commerce on the board.

Blaze News reached out to U.S. Steel, Nippon Steel, and the Department of Commerce for comment but did not receive responses by deadline.

The deal, according to McCormick, would save about 10,000 jobs in Pennsylvania and add another 10,000 jobs in the building trades. He noted elsewhere that the deal supports the creation of at least 14,000 jobs.

"This is being extremely well received in Pennsylvania," said McCormick. "The steel workers there are wildly excited about it, and I think it's going to be a great thing for my state."

While individual workers might be elated, the United Steelworkers, a general trade union headquartered in Pittsburgh, is skeptical — but was initially outright condemnatory.

'The latest "partnership" announcement continues to raise more questions than answers.'

"Allowing the sale of U.S. Steel to Nippon, a serial trade cheater, will be a disaster for American steelworkers, our national security, and the future of American manufacturing," USW international president David McCall said in a statement on May 22. "It is simply absurd to think that we could ever entrust the future of one of our most vital industries — essential to both national defense and critical infrastructure — to a company whose unfair trade practices continue to this day."

Blaze News reached out to the union after more details emerged about the nature of the "partnership." In response, a spokesman provided the message the USW sent to members Wednesday, which contained softened language but sustained skepticism:

The latest “partnership” announcement continues to raise more questions than answers. Nippon still maintains it would only invest in USS facilities if it owned the company outright. We’ve seen nothing in the reporting to indicate that position has changed. We also have no confirmation if or how much of the stated $14 billion would go to our union-represented sites, or how much would be for new capital improvements versus routine repair & maintenance.

While the USW remains uncertain about the arrangement, there appears to be significant support in Pennsylvania, including at the top.

Gov. Josh Shapiro noted in a statement that he and Pennsylvania Lieutenant Gov. Austin Davis have long "worked with the leadership of Nippon and U.S. Steel, local labor, and federal, state, and local partners to press for the best deal to keep U.S. Steel headquartered in Pittsburgh, protect union jobs, and secure the future of steelmaking in Western Pennsylvania."

"Now that President Trump — who has sole decision making authority in the CFIUS process, has expressed his support for the deal — we have the opportunity to deliver historic investments, ensure the future of American steelmaking continues to run through the Mon Valley while the headquarters of U.S. Steel remains in Pittsburgh and have our workers, right here in Pennsylvania, continue leading the world with their skill and innovation," added Shapiro.

Davis said the announcement looked "promising" but noted that he wants to "make sure everyone involved in the deal holds up their end of the bargain."

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Zelenskyy to sign minerals deal at White House Friday — without security guarantees



President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to travel to the White House Friday — a week after President Donald Trump called him a "dictator" — to sign a deal that would afford America access to some of Ukraine's buried natural wealth in exchange for investments in a reconstruction fund.

Trump noted Wednesday that it would be "a very big agreement."

While there was no mention in a draft of the deal of Ukraine paying the U.S. back for the hundreds of billions of dollars in aid that Kyiv has received in recent years, there are similarly no concrete security guarantees on America's part.

According to a draft of the deal obtained by CNN, the two countries plan to create a jointly managed "Reconstruction Investment Fund" that would collect and reinvest revenues resulting from the monetization of relevant Ukrainian-owned "deposits of minerals, hydrocarbons, oil, natural gas, and other extractable minerals."

Mineral resources already making money for Kyiv, such as the activities of Naftogaz, will not be not part of the deal.

As of Wednesday morning, the proposed deal specified that the Ukrainian government would contribute 50% of all revenues earned from such state-owned natural resource assets to the fund. Contributions will be routinely reinvested in Ukraine in the interest of promoting the nation's "safety, security, and prosperity."

Secretary of State Marco Rubio claimed in an interview last week that when he, Vice President JD Vance, and Zelenskyy previously discussed a version of the deal that would see the U.S. "paid back some of the money taxpayers have given," Zelenskyy said he was on board and would run it through his "legislative process." However, Zelenskyy instead went public, telling reporters that he rejected the deal.

'I want to find a NATO path or something similar.'

Ukrainian officials told the Financial Times (U.K.) that Kyiv proved ready to sign the agreement after the U.S. dropped demands for a right to $500 billion in mineral wealth.

Although the draft noted that the U.S. supports Ukraine's efforts to obtain security guarantees and would maintain a long-term financial commitment to the country's development, it makes no mention of America providing such guarantees.

Trump said during his Wednesday Cabinet meeting, "I'm not going to make security guarantees beyond very much. We're going to have Europe do that."

According to the BBC, Zelenskyy confirmed Wednesday he had pushed for a security guarantee from the U.S. but came up empty-handed.

"I wanted to have a sentence on security guarantees for Ukraine, and it's important that it's there," said Zelenskyy.

When asked whether he'd abandon the deal if he did not get what he wanted, Zelenskyy told reporters, "I want to find a NATO path or something similar," adding, "If we don't get security guarantees, we won't have a ceasefire, nothing will work, nothing."

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Manchin Is a Liar and the 'Inflation Reduction' Bill Is His Latest Con | Ep 549
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Manchin Is a Liar and the 'Inflation Reduction' Bill Is His Latest Con | Ep 549

McCloskeys plead guilty to lesser charges, forfeit guns from encounter with rioters



The St. Louis couple who became famous last year for displaying guns at protesters trespassing on their property have agreed to plead guilty to misdemeanor crimes and to give up the firearms they brandished in the incident.

Mark and Patricia McCloskey, both attorneys, had originally been charged with felonies.

What are the details?

KHOU-TV reported that Mark McCloskey pleaded guilty to a count of fourth-degree assault, a Class C misdemeanor, and will pay a $750 fine. Patricia McCloskey pleaded guilty to second-degree harassment, a Class A misdemeanor, and will pay a $2,000 fine.

The couple both originally faced felony charges of unlawful use of a weapon and tampering with physical evidence.

As part of the deal, the McCloskeys agreed to allow their guns held in the incident to be turned over to the state and destroyed. Their attorney had requested that the couple be able to auction the firearms off for a charity.

Mark McCloskey told Fox News following the deal, "The good news is we're not in front of charges now, so I don't have any problem getting myself another AR."

Mr. McCloskey, who is currently running for U.S. Senate as a Republican, told the outlet:

They dropped all the weapons charges and they charged me with the lowest level of misdemeanor, which is something called assault four, which alleges that I purposely placed at least one other person in apprehension of immediate physical injury. I said, "Well, I guess I did. That was all point of the guns."

"It's the value of the Second Amendment," he added. "It's kind of humorous for me at any rate, the charge they finally settled on for me, because it's exactly what I did do. That's the whole point of the Second Amendment. We stood out there with guns, and that placed them in imminent fear of physical injury, and they back off."

What's the background?

The McCloskeys confronted rioters outside their home last June, standing guard with weapons after the activists broke down the fence to their private neighborhood purportedly en route to the mayor's house.

The couple, who said the rioters physically threatened them, became a symbol of defiance against the violence that emerged out of several 2020 protests following the death of George Floyd.

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner originally charged the couple with the felonies, but was removed from the case after she exploited their prosecution in fundraising emails.

The nine protesters arrested and charged with trespassing on the McCloskeys' property were not prosecuted.

NY Gov. Cuomo set to pocket more than $5M from COVID-19 leadership book



Scandal-plagued New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) is set to make $5.1 million from his book, "American Crisis: Leadership Lessons form the Covid-19 Pandemic," and has already pocketed $3.12 million from the deal struck during the thick of the pandemic.

Most of the funds he's received so far have been funneled to his daughters' trust fund.

What are the details?

The New York Times reported the governor disclosed his income from 2020 showing the $3.12 million, and state officials explained that the publisher, Crown, agreed to pay the governor another $2 million over the next two years.

However, the newspaper called the book a "minefield" for Cuomo and Crown, who canceled promotions of the memoir months ago as scandals against the governor grew. The publisher did not immediately respond to The Times' question of whether they would still pay out the remainder of the governor's advance.

The book was published in mid-October "as the public health crisis raged," the New York Post noted, in a deal made by Cuomo "despite his administration being accused of sending COVID-positive patients back into nursing homes." The Cuomo administration was also accused of underreporting fatalities from the facilities over concerns about political fallout, which could also impact book sales.

Cuomo spokesman Richard Azzopardi told the Times that the governor received $1,537,508 in net proceeds after expenses and taxes for the book deal in 2020.

"From that net income, the governor donated a third to the United Way of New York State for statewide Covid relief and vaccination effort, and is giving the remainder in a trust for his three daughters equally," Azzopardi said in a statement.

Anything else?

The Daily Caller reported that "Cuomo's office had previously said the governor would donate a 'significant portion' of his book earnings to a COVID-related charity." Azzopardi did not immediately respond to the outlet's request for explanation on why the majority went to Cuomo's adult daughters.

New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) opened an investigation on whether Cuomo used state resources on his book, following reports that staffers from the governor's office assisted in promoting his memoir.

James is also investigating several sexual harassment and misconduct claims against Cuomo, who has refused to step down despite several Republicans and fellow Democrats calling for him to do so.

NAACP asks NFL to 'rethink its relationship' with Fox, says Fox News spreads 'hatred, bigotry, lies and racism'



NAACP President Derrick Johnson penned a letter to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell urging the league to "rethink its relationship" with Fox Corporation, saying their media agreements "should not be complicit in helping to increase the profits of Fox News" — which Johnson says spreads "hatred, bigotry, lies and racism."

What are the details?

"We are aware the NFL is currently negotiating carriage agreement renewals with broadcast partners," Johnson wrote, saying that while the NACCP looks "forward to wide distribution of American's favorite sports pastime, we have grave concerns about the ancillary implications of the League's affiliation with Fox."

He added in bold, highlighted text, "The NFL's programming should not be sued as a bargaining tool for [Fox Corporation owner] Rupert Murdoch to help fund Fox News' hatred, bigotry, lies and racism."

The NAACP president argued, "The NFL, a league where nearly 70 percent of the players are Black, should not be complicit in helping to increase the profits of Fox News, a leading voice in condemning those same players for peaceful demonstrations against systemic racism."

Johnson also asked for a meeting with NFL leadership to discuss the issue.

Johnson's letter is dated March 9, and was disclosed by multiple news outlets on Thursday — within hours of the NFL announcing its new long-term distribution agreements with its media partners.

USA Today reported that "The NFL did not immediately return a request for comment," adding:

The NFL did respond in another way, however. It announced a mega-deal on Thursday afternoon with television partners CBS, Fox, NBC, and ESPN/ABC, also, the league shifted its Thursday night package to Amazon Prime.

It's another indication of the power of the NFL. It also demonstrated that while the NAACP made a strong statement to the NFL in its letter, in the end, the NFL showed, money is the main driving force in football.

According to The Associated Press, the NFL's new deals will "nearly double its media revenue to more than $10 billion a season."

The NFL said in its press release that Fox renewed its agreement to produce its NFC package of Sunday afternoon games, and that it expanded its digital rights.

However, Fox lost its Thursday night NFL coverage to Amazon.

The AP reported:

Amazon has partnered with the league to stream Thursday night games since 2017, but it will take over the entire package from Fox, which has had it since 2018 after CBS and NBC shared the package for two seasons.
John Matze (Image source: Fox News video screenshot)

Ousted Parler CEO John Matze says he didn't want deal with Trump



Former Parler CEO John Matze says he was against a deal that gave former President Donald Trump partial ownership of the social media firm in exchange for making the site his exclusive platform, disclosing in a new interview that he believes Trump "might have bullied people inside the company."

What are the details?

Matze, who was terminated by Parler's board of directors last week, sat down with "Axios on HBO" and confirmed to the outlet that Parler and Trump representatives discussed a potential agreement to serve both parties — but Matze was against it.

Buzzfeed News first reported Friday that Parler was in talks with Trump associates before he left office regarding a proposal that would have granted the Trump Organization "a 40% stake in the company" if Trump would "make Parler his primary social network."

"I didn't like the idea of working with Trump, because he might have bullied people inside the company to do what he wanted," Matze told Axios. "But I was worried that if we didn't sign the deal, he might have been vengeful and told his followers to leave Parler."

Buzzfeed reported that the deal was never finalized, but legal experts said the discussions alone, which occurred while Trump was still in office, raise legal concerns.

According to the outlet:

During a subsequent phone interview, Matze told Axios the Mar-a-Lago meeting was set up by Jeffrey Wernick, an early Parler investor and its eventual chief operating officer. He says it lasted a few hours and that he didn't sleep over at the private club in Florida where Trump now lives.

Matze adds he doesn't know if the first offer was made by Wernick or by Trump campaign officials.

What's the background?

Parler has been almost entirely de-platformed after major tech firms Apple and Google pulled the app from cellphones last month and Amazon then refused to provide server hosting for the social networking firm over accusations that the company was not doing enough to moderate content in the aftermath of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Parler became a safe haven for conservative voices since it launched in 2018, by marketing itself as a free speech alternative to censor-loving networks Twitter and Facebook.

The company's future is not clear, and Matze's position as chief executive was a casualty as the company works to find a hosting service willing to make it widely available online once again.

Matze told Fox Business he is still not entirely sure why he was let go as CEO from the company he founded.

Former Parler CEO John Matze speaks out on why he was fired www.youtube.com

Your Phone Is Monitoring You! | 1/18/21
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Your Phone Is Monitoring You! | 1/18/21

Trump's niece says 'worst-case scenario' is Trump being 'unscathed' by COVID-19

Mary Trump, the only niece of current US President Donald Trump is concerned that COVID-19 might not have enough of a negative impact on the president.

Biden's climate change plan is not green—it’s garbage

Climate change is an essential component of Joe Biden's presidential campaign platform, and at the debate he showcased his plan, sort of, revealing that he didn't actually know too much about it.