During his address to the nation on March 4, 2025, President Donald Trump made a surprise announcement when he called to reinvigorate the American shipbuilding industry with huge support for naval and commercial shipyards.
Here is some of what he said: "To boost our defense industrial base we are also going to resurrect the American shipbuilding industry, including commercial shipbuilding and military shipbuilding. And for that purpose, I am announcing tonight that we will create a new office of shipbuilding in the White House that offers special tax incentives to bring this industry home to America where it belongs. We used it to make so many ships. We don’t make them anymore very much, but we’re going to make them very fast, very soon. It will have a huge impact."
He's right. America at one time used to build a lot of ships — and build them incredibly fast. Like in months, weeks, even days! In January 1941, President Roosevelt announced his own emergency shipbuilding program, with World War II looming on the horizon for America. And within months, shipyards were built, keels were laid, and new ships were under construction. It was an incredible moment of private and public coming together in a moment of crisis.
The story of America's Liberty ships unfolds dramatically in my book, Launching Liberty: The Epic Race to Build the Ships that Took America to War. It's coming in August, from Simon & Schuster.
Comments