Mike Lee Profile picture
Jan 27 • 11 tweets • 6 min read • Read on X
🧵 1/ What Are Letters Of Marque And Reprisal And How Could They Be Used To Weaken Drug Cartels? 🚨 Image
2/ Letters of marque and reprisal are government-issued commissions that authorize private citizens (privateers) to perform acts that would otherwise be considered piracy, like attacking enemy ships during wartime

Privateers are rewarded with a cut of the loot they “bring home” Image
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3/ Legal Basis in the U.S.

The U.S. Constitution authorizes these commissions in Article I, Section 8, giving Congress the power to “grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal”

While Congress hasn’t issued one in over a century, the authority to do so still exists Image
4/ Modern Context: Mexican Drug Cartels

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 Image
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5/ How Could They Be Applied?

- Authorization: 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

- Targets: Focus on disrupting supply lines, capturing high-value targets, or seizing assets like boats, vehicles, cash, gold, or equipment used in criminal activitiesImage
6/ Advantages

- Flexibility: Private entities operate with more agility than the government, adapting quickly with the tactics of cartels

- Cost: Would reduce the financial burden on taxpayers, as privateers receive only a cut of what they recover & return to the U.S. Image
7/ Criticism

The use of letters of marque and reprisal would undoubtedly draw criticism, especially from those inclined to elevate abstract, often-inchoate principles of what they deem “international law” above the sovereign interests of the United States Image
8/ Dismissing the possible use of letters of marque to combat Mexican drug cartels—either on the basis of “international law” or otherwise—overlooks the clear and present threat posed by those cartels to the U.S.

This could prove to be an effective alternative to war Image
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9/ We have no desire to go to war with our southern neighbor

But we also can’t ignore the fact that drug cartels are now threatening to target U.S. planes deporting illegal aliens

That sounds like a great reason to consider issuing letters of marque and reprisal Image
10/ Letters of marque and reprisal have worked well for the U.S.—and countless other countries—in the past

We’d be wrong not to consider using them against the cartels Image
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11/ Please share if you like this idea—and follow if you’d like to see more posts about letters of marque and reprisal & other amazing, little-known features of the U.S. Constitution Image

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More from @BasedMikeLee

May 17
đź§µ 1/ No state should dictate to political parties the process by which they nominate candidates

Ever

It ends badly for everyone—especially for conservatives
2/ Utah does this—through a law known as “SB54”

It has been disastrous for political parties—especially the Utah Republican Party
3/ If you live in a state that denies political parties their right to choose their own candidate-selection procedures, you should ask your lawmakers to change that
Read 5 tweets
May 15
🧵 Former FBI Director Jim Comey posted a cryptic message that—as far as I can tell—can be read only to mean “kill Trump”

I’m speechless

Literally speechless
1/ Image
I first met Jim Comey 22 years ago when I was an assistant U.S. attorney in Salt Lake City
2/
Mr. Comey paid a visit to the U.S. attorney’s office in Utah in response to an invitation from my former boss (and longtime friend and mentor), then-U.S. Attorney Paul Warner
3/
Read 14 tweets
May 5
1/ The REINS Act is a potential game-changer for restoring constitutional balance

It would prevent major regulations (those imposing compliance costs of at least $100M) from taking effect without being passed by Congress—not just rubber stamped by unelected bureaucrats! Image
Image
2/ Under the Constitution, only the people’s elected lawmakers are authorized to make federal law

Congress & the Supreme Court have neglected that requirement for decades

The REINS Act would fix this problem, which costs Americans trillions of dollars a year
3/ Essentially everything you buy becomes more expensive as businesses struggle to comply with the tens of thousands of pages of new federal regulations issued annually
Read 16 tweets
Apr 8
President Trump:

Making clean coal great again! Image
“My predecessor put America last. I’m putting America first.”
“The Paris Climate Accord was a bad deal—it was a scam to take money away from the United States and hurt us.”
Read 7 tweets
Mar 31
🧵 1. Americans are drowning in red tape—100,000 pages of new federal rules in 2024 alone, all from unelected bureaucrats

The REINS Act would stop this by requiring Congress to vote on & pass “major rules” *before* they may take effect

We must take back our freedom in 2025! Image
2. What is the REINS Act?

It’s simple: any regulation with a $100M+ economic impact must get a thumbs-up from Congress and the President before it can take effect

No more lawmaking by faceless agencies and unelected bureaucrats—power returns to the people’s elected lawmakers
3. Why now? The administrative state grows unchecked—$1.9T in costs from Biden-era rules alone

Innovation stalls, businesses suffer, and families pay the price

The REINS Act reins it in, and 2025 is our shot with a new Congress and President Trump in office—and of course @DOGE
Read 10 tweets
Feb 24
17. Republicans in Congress therefore need to take a stand—holding hostage something Democrats care about by attaching the REINS Act to that thing Image
18. To that end, Republicans should attach the REINS Act to any bill to increase the debt ceiling, forcing true compromise in an area where it’s badly needed—here, restoring separation of powers through the REINS Act Image
19. The REINS Act would force a restoration of the separation of powers mandated by the Constitution, by returning the lawmaking power to the legislative branch Image
Read 9 tweets

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