"To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal . . . "

[Juan McCain]

It was on Friday August 17,1787 that delegates of the Constitutional Convention that were still gathered in Philadelphia
actually voted on the clause of Article I - Legislative Branch : Section 8 - Powers of Congress that reads . . .

The Congress shall have power
"To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water."

The early draft had read "To make War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, . . . "

The discussion early in that day's session was whether to strike the word "make" and replace it with "declare" . . .

The founders ascertained that the new government did not really desire to make war . . .
so explicitly enumerated the Congress' power to "declare War and grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, " as part of the common defense of the new republic.

On it's second vote the question to strike out "make" to insert "declare" passed - with only the New Hampshire delegation as the sole no vote.

Source : The Records of the Federal Convention of 1787 at Volume 2 Page 314; Editor, Professor Max Farrand, Yale University Press, 1911


The enumerated power of Congress that was suggested by Congressman Ron Paul in October 2001
to "grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal . . ."
it seems there is no doubt or question of the founders intent on that part of the clause.

 

[MN Patriot]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Letters_of_Marque_and_Reprisal

In the days of fighting sail, a Letter of Marque and Reprisal was a government license authorizing a private vessel to attack and capture enemy vessels, and bring them before admiralty courts for condemnation and sale. Cruising for prizes with a Letter of Marque was considered an honorable calling combining patriotism and profit, permitted under international law—in contrast to unlicensed piracy, which was universally condemned.

Sounds like the potential for much abuse, kind of like crony capitalism.

 

[Juan McCain]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Letters_of_Marque_and_Reprisal

Sounds like the potential for much abuse, kind of like crony capitalism.

Thanks . . . maybe I'll have to edit and correct that Wikipedia now.

The founders were interested in the common defense, and they included it as an enumerated power to be used by Congress
to go after bad guys hiding in foreign nations - or any bad guys hiding under the guise of a foreign nation.

It is a way to constitutionally have some written authority that could be used short of declaring war against a nation -
all because some thugs were just hiding in that nation.

Or maybe that part of the constitution should be repealed ?

But it seems to me like that strategy could have worked better . . .
and maybe still could work better than being mired and financially crippled by being enticed to go to war in Afghanistan.

 

[Juan McCain]

H.R.3076
Title: To authorize the President of the United States to issue letters of marque and reprisal with respect to
certain acts of air piracy upon the United States on September 11, 2001, and other similar acts of war planned for the future.

Sponsor: Rep Paul, Ron [TX-14] (introduced 10/10/2001)

Co-sponsors for H.R.3076
Rep Burton, Dan [IN-6] - 10/29/2001
Rep Rohrabacher, Dana [CA-45] - 10/29/2001
Rep Schaffer, Bob [CO-4] - 11/14/2001
Rep Wamp, Zach [TN-3] - 11/14/2001
Rep Jones, Walter B., Jr. [NC-3] - 11/14/2001
Rep Goode, Virgil H., Jr. [VA-5] - 11/14/2001
Rep Tancredo, Thomas G. [CO-6] - 11/14/2001
Rep Kingston, Jack [GA-1] - 11/14/2001
Rep Rehberg, Dennis R. [MT] - 11/16/2001

Why did this just sit in Committee ? Does it need to be re-introduced ?

 

[Bruno]

Ron Paul's plan to fend off pirates

Thanks for bringing up this topic. Here's Ron talking about it last year. If there is already a bounty, and the military hasn't found Osama in 9 years, why not let people do it through letters of Marque and Reprisal?

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0409/21245.html

A little-known congressional power could help the federal government keep the Somali pirates in check — and possibly do it for a discount price.

Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) and a growing number of national security experts are calling on Congress to consider using letters of marque and reprisal, a power written into the Constitution that allows the United States to hire private citizens to keep international waters safe.

Used heavily during the Revolution and the War of 1812, letters of marque serve as official warrants from the government, allowing privateers to seize or destroy enemies, their loot and their vessels in exchange for bounty money.

The letters also require would-be thrill seekers to post a bond promising to abide by international rules of war.

In a YouTube video earlier this week, Paul suggested lawmakers consider issuing letters, which could relieve American naval ships from being the nation’s primary pirate responders — a free-market solution to make the high seas safer for cargo ships.

“I think if every potential pirate knew this would be the case, they would have second thoughts because they could probably be blown out of the water rather easily if those were the conditions,” Paul said.

Theoretically, hiring bounty hunters would also be a cheaper option. Instead, privateers would be incentivized to patrol the ocean looking for key targets — and money would be paid only to the contractor who completed the job.

“If we have 100 American wanna-be Rambos patrolling the seas, it’s probably a good way of getting the job done,” said Competitive Enterprise Institute senior fellow and security expert Eli Lehrer. “Right now we have a Navy designed mostly to fight other navies. The weapons we have are all excellent, but they may not be the best ones to fight these kinds of pirates. The only cost under letters of marque would be some sort of bounty for the pirates.”

According to Senate historians, Congress hasn’t issued a letter of marquee since the War of 1812, but the Confederate States of America issued them during the Civil War to deliver supplies behind enemy lines. There are also some indications that a letter was granted to a flying band of armed civilians during World War II to operate the Resolute, a Goodyear Blimp used to patrol the ocean for enemy submarines, but the issuance isn’t apparent in the Congressional Record.

If Congress were to revisit the antiquated process, a serious makeover would be required. In the past, privateers were allowed to keep the ship and treasure they captured in an enemy encounter.

“That isn’t a viable way of funding in today’s world,” said Lehrer. “These pirates don’t really have treasure chests, and their money is tied up in Swiss Bank accounts. Congress would probably have to attach sizable bounties to people.”

Bounties are not a new idea — there is still a $25 million bounty on Osama bin Laden, and millions have been awarded by the government for other enemy captures.

cont. http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0409/21245.html

 

[KCIndy]

H.R.3076
Title: To authorize the President of the United States to issue letters of marque and reprisal with respect to
certain acts of air piracy upon the United States on September 11, 2001, and other similar acts of war planned for the future.

Sponsor: Rep Paul, Ron [TX-14] (introduced 10/10/2001)

Co-sponsors for H.R.3076
Rep Burton, Dan [IN-6] - 10/29/2001
Rep Rohrabacher, Dana [CA-45] - 10/29/2001
Rep Schaffer, Bob [CO-4] - 11/14/2001
Rep Wamp, Zach [TN-3] - 11/14/2001
Rep Jones, Walter B., Jr. [NC-3] - 11/14/2001
Rep Goode, Virgil H., Jr. [VA-5] - 11/14/2001
Rep Tancredo, Thomas G. [CO-6] - 11/14/2001
Rep Kingston, Jack [GA-1] - 11/14/2001
Rep Rehberg, Dennis R. [MT] - 11/16/2001

Why did this just sit in Committee ? Does it need to be re-introduced ?

As usual, the major media used it for "laugh and chortle" effect. I remember seeing one newscast at the time (and I really wish I had it on video) where the commentators were laughing at Ron Paul and essentially saying something like, "Yeah, this guy wants to send pirates out after the terrorists..."