Deep divisions in battleground Pennsylvania over proposed sale of U.S. Steel to Japanese company

WEST MIFFLIN, Pa. — It's one the few things Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump agree on: opposing the sale of U.S. Steel to the Japanese company Nippon Steel.

But the proposed deal is shattering party loyalty in parts of western Pennsylvania where some steelworkers feel they're being used as political talking points.

"I'm pissed," said Chris Kelly, the mayor of West Mifflin, a small town near Pittsburgh. "I believe everybody's being played as a pawn."

Kelly, a Democrat, said he was initially skeptical of Nippon buying U.S. Steel, which operates plants in West Mifflin and surrounding communities known as the Mon Valley. The company has been making steel here since its inception in 1901. It employs some 4,000 people across Pennsylvania and has said it sustains more than 11,000 indirect jobs and brings in $3.6 billion in economic impact to the region.

During an interview inside his garage — which doubles as his mayoral office — Kelly said Nippon won him over by promising billions of dollars in investments.

"I've learned what the deal is about," he said, adding that it would protect jobs and pensions. "I wish [national politicians] were here today to talk to actual union workers in the mill and the effect it would have on them if they stop this deal in its tracks. It's too important."

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Kelly is bucking his own party. Two people familiar with the matter confirmed to NBC News that President