The CEO of Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE: CLF) is not holding back in his assessment of lawsuits filed by Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel Corp. that are aimed at salvaging a deal that has been blown up by President Joe Biden and, more broadly, political opposition.

In dual lawsuits filed Jan. 6, U.S. Steel Corp. and Nippon Steel Corp. blame the Biden administration's politicizing its national-security review as well as the behind-the-scenes actions by rival Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. and United Steelworkers International President David McCall for scuttling the $14.9 billion deal.

Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel this morning sued the Biden administration for blocking their proposed tie-up, as expected. Driving the news: They also filed a RICO complaint against rival Cleveland-Cliffs,

Cleveland-Cliffs says it's being scapegoated for the president's decision to block Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel after a lawsuit alleges it's waging an ongoing campaign to try to buy the Pittsburgh-based steelmaker "under distressed circumstances,