WASHINGTON -- Less than three decades after the first steel mill opened in Mississippi County, a lawmaker from northeastern Arkansas is poised to lead the House Steel Caucus.
U.S. Rep. Rick Crawford, a Republican from Jonesboro, said he will be the first Southerner to hold the post. He'll serve as co-chairman, along with U.S. Rep. Mike Bost, R-Ill.
U.S. Rep. Pete Visclosky, D-Ind., is the caucus's vice chairman.
The previous chairman, U.S. Rep. Tim Murphy, R-Pa., resigned from Congress this month amid allegations that he'd mistreated staff members and encouraged a mistress to get an abortion.
The 1st Congressional District, which Crawford represents, wasn't a steel producer in the 1970s when the caucus was founded by U.S. Reps. John Murtha, D-Pa., and Ralph Regula, R-Ohio.
Today, it is the second-largest steel producing congressional district in the nation. The Nucor-Yamato Steel Co., which was created in 1987, built a structural steel mill on an old cotton field near Blytheville. Nucor Steel Arkansas launched another plant soon thereafter.
Earlier this year, Big River Steel opened a $1.2 billion steel mill in Osceola, roughly 20 miles to the south.
The transformation, in recent years, from farming community to factory town has been dramatic, according to Liz Smith, executive director of the Greater Blytheville Chamber of Commerce.
"We underwent a long transition, going from an agriculturally driven county to an industrially driven county," she said.
"We have right now right at 2,300 jobs, which are in steel mills ... and then many other jobs and companies that are steel-related," she said. "Just from a sheer jobs perspective, steel is very vital to us."
Statewide, the steel industry has created more than 5,000 jobs, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute, a Washington-based trade group.
Nationwide, roughly 140,000 people have steel industry jobs, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute.
"Arkansas obviously has a key role in the steel industry," said group spokesman Lisa Harrison.
Crawford said his selection is an acknowledgement that the industry is changing.
"I think what you're seeing is sort of a geographic shift in the center of steel production. Where it's historically been in the Rust Belt, now ... we're starting to see the steel industry move south, so having that seat at the table's important for us," he said.
Steel companies were drawn to Blytheville and Osceola in part because of its access to highways, railways and waterways -- the Mississippi River stretches past both communities.
Low energy prices were also a major draw, Crawford said.
In his new role, Crawford said he'll be better able to advocate for American-made steel.
Since his election in 2010, he has testified before the International Trade Commission, urging it to crack down on what he views as unfair trade practices.
He also endorsed a "Buy American, Hire American" initiative, calling for the federal government to purchase domestically produced steel for its infrastructure projects.
Smith, the chamber of commerce executive, said Crawford has already proved to be a dependable ally. "He is responsive. He is accessible to us, which is a big plus ... and definitely tries to stand for the steel industry," she said.
Metro on 10/25/2017