On this, the third episode of The American Merchant Marine, we examine the historical context of the passage of the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, commonly referred to as the Jones Act. We discussed the publication of the new report by the American Maritime Partnership on transportation to Hawaii and the reaction against it. We also go into the history of the Jones Act and the situation facing the United States prior to 1920 and how a conflict in Southeast Europe could erupt and eventually drag the US into the war. We also query the potential for a future scenario to unfold in Southeast Asia and would the nation be able to meet the contingency of a war should China, Japan, Korea, and the Philippines be dragged into a conflict? American Maritime Partnership, Impact of the U.S. Jones Act on Hawaii https://www.americanmaritimepartnership.com/press-releases/comprehensive-jones-act-study-finds-no-effect-on-cost-of-living-in-hawaii/ Shipbuilding through to 2024 https://splash247.com/shipbuilding-through-to-2024/ Sea History, Winter 2019-2020 https://issuu.com/seahistory/docs/sh_169_winter-2019-20 A Century of the Jones Act https://seahistory.org/wp-content/uploads/SH169_Feature_Jones_Act.pdf The Merchant Marine Act of 1920 https://govtrackus.s3.amazonaws.com/legislink/pdf/stat/41/STATUTE-41-Pg988.pdf The Shipping Act of 1916 and Emergency Fleet Corporation: America Builds, Requisitions, and Seizes a Merchant Fleet Second to None https://www.cnrs-scrn.org/northern_mariner/vol26/tnm_26_407-424.pdf Sovereignty at Sea: U.S. Merchant Ships and American Entry into World War I http://www.essaysinhistory.com/sovereignty-at-sea-u-s-merchant-ships-and-american-entry-into-world-war-i/ “We Built Her to Bring Them Over There”: The Cruiser and Transport Force in the Great War https://seahistory.org/we-built-her-to-bring-them-over-there-the-cruiser-and-transport-force-in-the-great-war/ The First U.S. Overseas Troop Convoy https://www.history.navy.mil/browse-by-topic/war