Last spring White House staffers presented President Trump with the opportunity to introduce a very interesting wrinkle to the Jones Act, the 1920 law that restricts domestic waterborne transportation to vessels that are U.S.-flagged, U.S.-built and mostly U.S.-owned and crewed.

The Jones Act has been a blight upon the United States for nearly 100 years. That the law survives despite its well-documented costs can in large part be ascribed to frequently-made claims it is vital to U.S. national security.

Such claims should be greeted with a skeptical eye.

Some Americans may be surprised to learn that agriculture in their country is in large part based on a five-year plan.