Comment by resters
only because of the outsized political importance of a few states that happen to specialize in outdated manufacturing technologies and happen to have enough electoral votes that politicians have an incentive to subsidize them.
It's a massive tax on the economy all to provide a tiny bit of welfare to a small number of workers. Better to just pay them a welfare check!
The world is the most unstable it has been in decades. If/when a war kicks off, you have to have your supply chain local because the oceans will be instantly impassable until we can work out how to counter submarines.
This has little to do with welfare and everything to do with national security.