Posted on April 27, 2026
And don’t miss the response of the Dredging Contractors of America to this development, included at the end of this story.
The extended Jones Act waiver is already distorting the market. Wall Street oil traders are walking away from American tanker operators and locking in months long transportation deals with foreign companies using foreign built ships and foreign crews to move oil, gasoline, diesel, chemicals, and other products between U.S. ports.
That is not national security. It is a giveaway.
These deals will not lower prices at the pump. Not one cent is being passed to the American consumer. Instead, they take work from U.S. companies, strip jobs from American mariners, and shift economic activity to foreign firms that pay no U.S. taxes and contribute nothing to our industrial base.
Donald Trump has been a strong supporter of rebuilding America’s maritime strength. But this policy cuts in the opposite direction. It undermines the very shipyards, operators, and workforce we need in a national emergency.
It is time for the President to hear directly from the leaders of American shipyards, U.S. shipping companies, maritime labor, training institutions, and industry associations before further damage is done.
—William P. Doyle, CEO, Dredging Contractors of America
