Rare Earths are actually not rare. They are spread across the world, but in small amounts relative to everything else.
That means they are energy, land and up until recently, pollution intensive. Its why China controls them all. They simply kept producing, while the rest of the western world abandoned production.
Lefties will drive any and all producers away. Is it any wonder why the last mine in the USA was in - California?
That is the root of it. The environmental movement in the West has its roots in Communism (Ironically, because Communist countries unfailingly devastate and destroy the environment in far worse and more universal ways than any Western country.)
The environmental devastation in many Eastern Bloc countries along with the Soviet Union and today, China, makes our environmental abuses pale in comparison.
The Left has found that environmentalism, when coupled with activist judges who legislate from the bench, is a potent combination that conservatives simply didn’t pay attention to until we woke up one day that a communist foe has effectively monopolized our supply chains and will use it against us as a weapon whenever they feel the need, as we would rightfully use against them if we felt the need.
A bad situation, no doubt. We do need to revive this aspect of our industry here, as we do have many of the things needed, but the environmental movement has made them nearly impossible to exploit.