It can, at times, make for an odd-seeming focus by a U.S. president. However, gaining American government control over rare earth minerals is part of a broader approach to combating Beijing, stemming from a national security and economic strategy to reduce U.S. dependency on China, which dominates the global supply chain for these essential materials. His administration views securing a domestic and allied supply as a key priority for maintaining America’s technological and military edge.

Trump has pushed for streamlining the country’s permitting process, which S&P Market Intelligence analysts say can take up to 29 years. He has also moved to buy stakes in rare earth mineral companies, giving the U.S. government rare power over private firm decisions.

It’s a decision that was welcomed by Melissa “Mel” Sanderson, director of American Rare Earths, a Wyoming-based company looking to secure an American supply of the commodity.

“Growing a world-leading economy will require a massive injection of capital investment and demands coordination,” Sanderson said in an interview.

In July 2025, the Defense Department, which Trump has since renamed the War Department via executive order, acquired a 15% stake in MP Materials, the owner of California’s Mountain Pass rare earth mine. It later took a 10% stake in Trilogy Metals Minerals with the right to buy more. The Pentagon added another $620 million investment in Vulcan Elements Minerals.

Other federal departments obtained partial ownership in mineral companies. The Energy Department took a 5% stake in both Lithium Americas and its Thacker Pass joint venture with General Motors in Nevada. The Commerce Department bought $50 million in equity in Vulcan Elements and a 10% stake in chipmaker Intel.

When asked about the Intel deal, Trump said he hoped the United States would take more stakes in companies. He boasted on Truth Social that the Intel deal hasn’t cost American taxpayers anything, even though the government said it paid $8.9 billion.

China’s economic threats factor into Trump’s rare earth minerals push

The Trump administration is betting that the policy moves will blunt China’s rare earth minerals dominance — it controls 69% of the market. The International Energy Agency predicted Beijing will remain the top producer of rare earths through 2035. China also controls 92% of the processing market.

Analysts argue that it’s due to careful planning by the country’s leadership.

“China did not build up their rare earths expertise overnight, but rather through around 30-40 years of consistent government support in R&D and industrial policy coordinated in close conjunction with industry,” said Seaver Wang, director of Climate and Energy Program at the Berkeley, California-based Breakthrough Institute, in an interview.

Wang encouraged Trump to focus on ore processing and financial incentives to help give mining companies more operational certainty.

Trump likened the demand for the rare earth minerals to the gold rush of the 1800s, when prospectors headed West to find vast ore deposits.

Despite the political urgency and federal spending, not everyone is convinced the Trump administration is on the right path.

Megan Jenkins, strategic research director at the Pacific Legal Foundation, said purchasing stakes avoids the heart of the problem. She pointed to a U.S. Geological Survey estimate

Jenkins, in an interview, blamed the permitting process for making it difficult to access those minerals.

S&P Market Intelligence analysts said the U.S. has the second-longest time to complete the mine permitting process, in front of only Zambia. Even more troubling is that only three American mines have started production since 2002.

Josh T. Smith, energy policy lead for the Abundance Institute, likened that timeline to a “call coming from inside the house.”

“Our inability to mine is a self-inflicted wound caused by layers of regulation and a poor permitting environment. You add in philosophical opposition from strands of today’s environmental movement, and you have permitting paralysis,” said Smith, at the Salt Lake City-based Abundance Institute, which bills itself as “A mission-driven nonprofit focused on creating space for emerging technologies to grow, thrive, and have a chance to reach their full potential.”

He blamed the National Environmental Policy Act, saying its rules make it easier for anyone to sue, thus delaying projects. He lobbied for a new “build, baby, build” mindset where red tape is cut by implementing swift deadlines for permitting review to accelerate construction timelines.

If permit streamlining happened along with changes to the Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act, free market advocates predicted, then private investment would open up toward minerals and locations without taxpayer risk.

Permitting reform also received endorsement from those who believe in industrial policy.

Weaver pointed to the recent discovery of a rare earth deposit in Maine, one that can’t be mined due to the state’s Metallic Mineral Mining Act.

BREAKING DOWN RISING ELECTRICITY PRICES: THE ROLE OF TRANSMISSION LINES

Congress hasn’t been willing to act.

While the House of Representatives passed the SPEED Act, a permitting reform bill setting stricter deadlines on environmental reviews, the bill died in the Senate in late December 2025. It’s not known if the majority of Republicans will attempt to take up the bill again.

Taylor Millard is a freelance journalist who lives in Virginia. Follow him on X @TaylorMillard.