American Samoa
Coverage of American Samoa in the Nexus archive.
- Trump opens up Pacific marine national monuments to commercial fishing
President Trump opened previously protected areas of the Pacific Ocean to commercial fishing, affecting three marine national monuments around the northwestern Hawaiian Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa, covering nearly half a million square miles.
- US territories have a voice in Congress but no vote – here’s why
As the US celebrates its 250th anniversary, 3.6 million residents of US territories (including Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the US Virgin Islands) have no senators and only nonvoting representatives in Congress, excluding them from full democratic participation.
- Companies join a deep-sea mining rush after Trump executive order, as regulators fast-track permits
Following Trump's executive order to develop a deep-sea mining industry, at least nine companies are pursuing permits to mine seafloor minerals from American Samoa to Alaska, with stock prices rising and federal regulators fast-tracking approvals. However, experts raise concerns about the companies' uncertain financial models, questionable track records, and unresolved questions about mineral processing.