Is there ever a time when it acceptable for government to to stand in the way of economic progress and growth? Perhaps. I mean, if a company is doing something harmful to the consumers or the community, the government should step in and take care of the problem. But that only makes sense as one of the essential functions of government should the be protection of the masses… But what happens when politics interferes with progress?

As an avid supporter of the community and a firm believer that the government should show more restraint when interfering with economic and community growth, I question when the government steps in for purely political reasons. As such, I raise question over the fact that Minnesota governor, Tim Pawlenty, is threatening progress on the iron range for purely political reasons.

What is at stake here is a $1.6 billion Minnesota Steel taconite mine/steel mill project. The project, which has been in the works for seven years, and is due to break ground early next year is something the severely depressed range has been looking forward to. The project stands to employ 2,000 construction jobs as well as 700 permanent workers, which would stand as a massive boost to the areas weak economy.

So what’s the big deal then? Well, this is where politics gets in the way. Apparently, the governor has caught wind that the company that is opening the mill, Essar Global, ltd, may also work with Iran. So is this enough reason to halt a massive economic project and further decimate a community? Personally, I wouldn’t think so. Essar is a massive industrial conglomerate, based in India, that does business around the world. Part of  doing work around the world also means the possibility of doing work in countries that America doesn’t necessarily like. But they’re not an American comnpany, and as such we can’t tell them what countries to do projects for.

However, governor Pawlenty thinks differently. As he says:

“There are some things more important than a steel plant, and one of those things is, the state of Minnesota is not going to be in a position, under my watch at least, of supporting companies who are engaged in inappropriate activities with the country of Iran.”

So is Pawlenty in the right here? Federal law states that a US company cannot do business with Iran, but foreign companies and even foreign subsidiaries of US companies are permitted to do so as long as the companies are independent of the US. So would Essar operating a steel mill in Northern Minnesota really tie Minnesota to Iran. No, of course not. This is nothing but a political game and Pawlenty doesn’t want to look like he’s going soft on Iran.

So is this sort of political strategy worth taking away the opportunity for economic progress in Northern Minnesota? No, of course not. This project and the money going into it is going into the community and into Minnesota. It is not going to Iran. It is not going to support terrorism. This is the sort of absurdity that makes American politics a laughing stock. If somebody says “Iran” in the same sentence as anything else, it’s immediately pegged as “taboo” and condemned. How asinine is that? Is it even ok that we think that we can dictate who foreign companies can do business with as long as it’s reasonable work (i.e. building nuclear weapons for Iran would probably not be a good idea)? If we want to tell our own companies who to deal with, that’s one thing, but to tell a foreign company that they cannot deal with both Iran and us?Come on, give me a break and stop acting like a baby.

Yet, to further add to the silly political laugh-a-thon, the state Democrats are acting even more ridiculous. While they question the governor’s choice here, they turn it into a silly political issue, claiming that Pawlenty simply doesn’t like the iron range. Right, Pawlenty doesn’t like an area of Minnesota, so in turn he’s going to purposely hurt it. Makes perfect sense to me. Who are these people and what planet do they live on?

So to be certain, I’m not a fan of Iran, but I also don’t believe that the American government should be in the business of regulating international business and punishing companies that do work in countries like Iran. Pawlenty is in the wrong here. Favoring political positioning over community economic well being is sick.