Of course the U.S and allies like Canada/Australia have all the critical minerals needed. But the U.S. does not have the ecosystem to mine and process it. The author suggests critical R&D but the administration is also waging war on the top universities (Harvard & co.), and generally looking down on what's coming from them. A good researcher is going to have a pact with the devil to agree to this, unless the administration throws money and brute force at the problem.