Now, having said all that, I'm reminded of Axe's comment on the aluminum mill thread...The one which talked about aluminum and steel mills shutting down because of energy costs. America can compete on a level playing field without having cheap labor, if they have cheap energy.
Without one or the other, the U.S. has a hard time fighting off subsidized steel or other metals.
But...Just like computer chips, things like steel, oil, lithium, titanium, etc., are all strategic materials. The question becomes what should we do about materials we must have?
Yes, we can create jobs in sectors that look good on the unemployment numbers, but nobody works in commercial aviation, when you don't have the materials to build the planes. Nobody works in the hospitality industry when there is not steel or lumber to build the hotels. And nobody works in the computer industry without chips and copper.