Mike Lee Proposes Issuing Letters of Marque

I haven't talked to Mike Lee in years. He is one of my senators, and I occasionally fire off a missive to his office, but we haven't had a one-on-one conversation since my radio days. Lee has never been at a loss for a quip or a novel idea, and let's be honest: the drug cartels south of the border have no intention of going away, no matter how many planes we send to Colombia. So why not think out of the box?

Lee has proposed that the government return to issuing letters of marque. For those of you not versed in pirate lore (meaning anyone who does not have the same weird fascination with it as I do, which is likely everyone), a letter of marque was a document issued by a government to privateers to loot and plunder ships belonging to enemy nations. The crews or, more likely, the owners got a cut of the take. Many privateers also engaged in piracy, although one of the most famous pirates in history, Henry Morgan, despised being called a pirate and considered himself a one-time privateer and a loyal subject to the British crown.

The U.S. has used letters of marque in the past. Congress issued them to merchant ships during the American Revolution to harass and plunder enemy vessels, and lo and behold, they worked.

In a series of posts on X, Lee noted that, believe it or not, Congress still has that power under Article 1, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution. He argues that while we haven't used it in a while, it might be time to dust it off and leverage it against the drug cartels. He sees the move as a good one, given the threats by the cartels against the U.S. for returning criminals to their countries of origin. 

Lee explained:

Using letters of marque could be a novel but effective response to unique threats posed by drug cartels—especially in response to threats by the cartels to target U.S. planes returning illegal immigrants to their countries of origin.

Congress could issue letters of marque and reprisal authorizing private security firms or specially trained civilians to intercept cartel operations, particularly those involving drug shipments or human trafficking across borders. 

The focus would be on disrupting supply lines of trafficked drugs and people. Assets like boats, gold, cash, and equipment would be seized. Obviously, the government would handle any drugs involved and the trafficked persons.  

Lee asserts that issuing letters of marque would be cheaper for the U.S. taxpayer and easier logistically since said privateers could respond to cartels with more agility and could adapt their tactics faster than government troops. He also commented that it would be a preferable alternative to going to war with our southern neighbors. 

He also acknowledged that while the U.S. does not want to declare war, the threat posed by the cartels cannot be ignored. One responder on X raised a point: if a company or group has a letter of marque, what would prevent them from harassing or stealing from private citizens, innocent bystanders, or the victims themselves? Some vetting process would be necessary, and since Trump created the Space Force, perhaps he could create the U.S. Department of Privateering. That's a tough one since, traditionally, issuing letters of marque is a job for Congress. But then again, who wants The Squad raising a pirate army?