The world is a dangerous and competitive place. China is expanding its naval presence across the globe. Russia is rebuilding its military industrial base and testing the limits of the free world from Ukraine to the Arctic. Rogue regimes like Iran and North Korea continue to rattle their sabers.

In such a world, the United States cannot afford to be naïve about the strategic importance of maintaining a strong domestic maritime capability.

Yet there are still voices in Washington and the think-tank circuit who call for gutting or repealing the Jones Act, the century-old law that forms the backbone of America’s maritime security.

The Merchant Marine Act of 1920 — known as the Jones Act — is simple in concept and profound in impact. It requires that goods transported between U.S. ports be carried on ships that are built in America, owned by Americans, and crewed by Americans. That ensures that, in times of war or crisis, the United States has the ships, shipyards, and trained mariners it needs to defend itself and sustain its military.

Without it, America would quickly find itself dependent on foreign powers — many of them adversaries — for essential shipping within our own borders. That would be economic suicide and a national security nightmare rolled into one.

Cabotage Laws: The Global Norm

Critics of the Jones Act often paint it as an antiquated protectionist relic. But here’s the irony they never acknowledge: most major maritime nations around the world have their own cabotage laws, and many of the very countries that complain about America’s policy enforce restrictions far........

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