A look at the controversial maritime law as Trump seeks to bo

President Donald Trump is seeking to revive the troubled American shipbuilding industry that is largely backward from China, and has recently signed an executive order to start a series of initiatives aimed at growing.

Specifically, on April 10, it is necessary to formulate a naval action plan and direct the United States trade representative to submit a list of recommendations to deal with “anti -competition measures in China in the shipbuilding industry”, among other things.

But there is one law dating back to a century, which is the cornerstone of the American shipbuilding industry, in which supporters argue that it is very important for national security purposes, while critics claim that it is responsible for strangling the American shipbuilding industry significantly: Jones Law.

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President Donald Trump is seeking to revive the troubled American shipbuilding industry and recently signed an executive order to start a series of initiatives aimed at growing. (Associated Press / Associated Press)

The controversial Jones Law is a management measure in the Law of Maritime Merchants that was passed in 1920, which requires only American ships to carry goods between American ports and stipulate that at least 75 % of crew members are American citizens. In addition, it requires that these ships be built in the United States and owned by US citizens.

The Maritime Traders Law defines many regulations for marine trade and shipping in the United States

While the supporters of the Jones Law claim that it increases national security and prevents foreign countries from reaching the United States to the United States, critics argue that the law is old and impedes the competitiveness in the industry while leading the costs of building ships.

“Anyone who is serious about reviving the shipping industry should start mainly by getting rid of the Jones Law,” Veronik de Roger, an older research colleague at the Mercatos Center at George Mason University, told Fox News Digital on Thursday.

“It is not everything, but it is the beginning,” she said.

The law has built fewer ships, according to De Rugy, because it is more expensive to build in the United States more than countries such as China, South Korea or Japan, which dominates the shipbuilding market. She said that over time, this prompted the United States to obtain an old fleet.

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Trump’s efforts to revitalize the American shipbuilding industry come as American tracks come near peer competitors like China in shipbuilding. China is responsible for more than 50 % of global shipbuilding, compared to only 0.1 % of the United States, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Kullen Jarabo, assistant director at the Cato Institute of Commercial Policy Studies, said that although the Jones Law does not bear responsibility for all the problems facing the shipbuilding industry, it greatly undermines shipbuilding in the United States

“I think the tape has been seized very low,” Jarabo said. “In fact, I think we will do what is better. Why do I think we will do what is better? This is because … basically, I think the industry should not compete will become a competitive. I think it is just a kind of intuitive.”

Located lawmakers, including Senator Mike Lee, R-R-Utah, made efforts to cancel the Jones Law. For example, the Water Sewerage Law in Open America was presented to me in January 2024 to cancel the law.

The Senator Mike Lee, R-r-Otah, confirmed that Senator will present legislation to cancel the Jones Law again in this congress. (Bill Clark / CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images / Getty Images)

Lee’s office told Fox News Digital on Thursday that Senator will present the legislation again at this conference.

However, previous efforts to cancel the Jones law have proven that it is unsuccessful, and this measure maintains strong support from a group of legislators in Congress. Supporters claim that the law enhances national security by maintaining a commercial fleet capable of transporting military goods in times of conflict and ensuring that foreign countries are not accessible to American waterways.

In addition, military leaders expressed his support for this measure.

For example, the air General Randal Reed, the commander of the US Transport Command, told Senator Mazi Herono, De Hawaii, and other legislators of the Senate Armed Service Committee in March that the law is a pivotal for military preparation.

“The Jones Law allows us to already shipping resources,” said Reed. “Because of this action, we have a way to make sure that we can build ships here in the United States, so that we can sail those ships to maintain trade, so that we can produce the crews that sail those ships, so that we have the essence of” sailors.

“At the same time, if the nation needs people to go to the sea, we can invite this power to sail,” said Reed. “We will be safer in this way.”

Senator Mazi Herono, Commander of the Air Force Air Force for General Rand Reed, requested the Jones Law in March. (Tom Williams Paul / Getty Embers / Getty Em.

In addition, the United States, the Navy Navy Organization, the Naval Services Organization, reported that the Jones Law supports the border security mission in the Coast Guard.

“Without the Jones Law, the Coast Guard and Customs will face the new burden of guaranteeing foreign seas testing properly, including work permits, in hundreds of internal waterway sites to prevent internal security incidents,” the Naval League said in a political document in 2023.

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Meanwhile, Trump pointed out an interest in a kind of reforms and floats to work with Congress to pass legislation that allows the purchase of ships from foreign countries on April 10, although he had no details. If this effort proves success, Gribow says it will put Defenders Jones Act in a narrow place and weaken their argument.

However, Grabow said it is unlikely to prove the efforts to completely cancel the law, although the issue is getting more attention than it was in the past.

“You see more and more gossip, and it seems that more and more people wake up to the fact that this law does not work,” said Jarabo. “The fact that we are doing this conversation about activating the construction of American ships is an indictment of the law. If the law works, then why do we conduct this conversation?”