The mine is on public land
So far as I can tell from US Government maps, the mine is on public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management. That means the ore is public property. Polycorp may have paid for a lease and may be paying royalties on the ore extracted (though it is likely not nearly what it is worth), but that doesn't change the ownership of the minerals themselves. If I am right and they belong to US, then the minerals should be mined and sold for the benefit of the American people, not just for the owners and shareholders of Polycorp. (Of course, if the mine is actually on private land, then they have only a moral obligation not to sell to China.)
