foxconn's way of getting around their deal with wisconsin is to open up "innovation centers" around the state and apparently employ people to not do anything in order to reach employment numbers to get tax breaks. they are still well short but that's probably even worse because hundreds of millions in taxpayer money have already been spent. its a real question whether or not wisconsin is going to sue foxconn for breach of contract in september.
I used to work for a steel company in Ohio and it was sad watching it decline once Chinese steel flooded the market. Some companies still want cheap steel but don't like China, so they instead buy cheaper steel from Canada, Mexico and South Korea, but it turns out most of that steel is second hand Chinese steel that was dumped into those countries.
If our entire steel industry dies, then we are screwed if we get involved in a large-scale war
Most people won't care about this, but this is a local project that was promised to bring a lot of jobs and bring a lot of money into the area in general. They were given massive tax breaks and have had a very cooperative local government. The jobs, understandably, are short-term (5 years or less) while the plant is being built and there won't be very many by comparison once its done, mostly skilled labor and lab jobs.
Western Pennsylvania is well known as a hotbed for steel production, anything you need made with the material can be manufactured locally. However, the reality is that it's far cheaper to use foreign steel products--particularly from China. That is why the region saw massive economic (and population) downturn in the 70's and 80's, the local steel plants could no longer stay afloat with their buyers turning to foreign steel. Pittsburgh has been reinventing itself as a tech hub, but that growth will likely never return us to the levels we saw with the economic boom after World War 2.