Editing Letter of marque (section)

==21st-century American reconsideration of letters of marque==
Article I of the United States Constitution lists issuing letters of marque and reprisal in Section 8 as one of the [[enumerated powers]] of Congress, alongside the power to tax and to declare war. However, since the American Civil War, the United States as a matter of policy has consistently followed the terms of the 1856 Paris Declaration forbidding the practice. The United States has not legally commissioned any privateers since 1815, although the status of submarine-hunting Goodyear airships in the early days of [[World War II]] created significant confusion. Various accounts refer to airships ''Resolute'' and ''Volunteer'' as operating under a "privateer status", but Congress never authorized a commission, nor did the President sign one.<ref>[http://ssrn.com/abstract=1591039 Theodore Richard, Reconsidering the Letter of Marque: Utilizing Private Security Providers Against Piracy (April 1, 2010). Public Contract Law Journal, Vol. 39, No. 3, pp. 411-464 at 429 n.121, Spring 2010. Available at ssrn.com]</ref>

The issue of marque and reprisal was raised before Congress after the [[September 11 attacks]]<ref>[http://www.house.gov/paul/tst/tst2001/tst091701.htm TST: Statement on the Congressional Authorization of the Use of Force] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930113538/http://www.house.gov/paul/tst/tst2001/tst091701.htm |date=2007-09-30 }}</ref> and again by Congressman [[Ron Paul]] on July 21, 2007. The attacks were defined as acts of "air piracy" and the ''Marque and Reprisal Act of 2001'' was introduced, which would have granted the president the authority to use letters of marque and reprisal against the specific terrorists, instead of warring against a foreign state. The terrorists were compared to pirates in that they are difficult to fight by traditional military means.<ref>[http://www.house.gov/paul/press/press2001/pr101101.htm Paul offers President New Tool in the War on Terrorism] on the homepage of United States House of Representatives, accessed at April 29, 2007. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070502184326/http://www.house.gov/paul/press/press2001/pr101101.htm |date=May 2, 2007 }}</ref> On April 15, 2009, Paul also advocated the use of letters of marque to address the issue of [[Piracy in Somalia|Somali pirates]] operating in the [[Gulf of Aden]]. However, the bills Paul introduced were not enacted into law.

During the [[2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine]], the [[United States Congress]] considered a bill to "[authorize] the [[President of the United States|President]] to issue letters of marque and reprisal" in order to seize [[Superyacht|yachts]] owned by [[Russian oligarchs]].<ref>[https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/6869 H.R.6869 — 117th Congress (2021-2022)]</ref>

US Senator [[Mike Lee]] and others have suggested consideration be given to the potential use of letters of marque and reprisal in efforts to curtail the presence of [[Mexican cartels]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Nitzberg |first1=Alex |title=Mike Lee floats allowing private parties to target drug cartels for profit |url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/mike-lee-floats-allowing-private-parties-target-drug-cartels-profit |access-date=26 February 2025 |agency=Fox News |date=28 January 2025}}</ref>