U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett Files Bill Empowering Trump to Enlist ‘Privately Armed and Equipped Actors’ to Confront Cartels

U.S. Representative Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) on Thursday filed legislation that would empower President Donald Trump to issue letters of marque and reprisal, allowing privately armed and equipped individuals and organizations to confront criminal cartels.

According to a press release from Burchett’s office, the Cartel Marque and Reprisal Reauthorization Act of 2025 would give the Trump administration authority, “to commission privately armed and equipped actors to seize the persons and property of any cartel, cartel member, or cartel-linked organizations,” in a move the representative said offers a new opportunity to confront crime at the southern border.

“They push millions of dollars in fentanyl into our country with no regard for American lives. It’s time to get creative about how we face these threats,” stated Burchett. “These cartels present a serious risk to our national security, and this bill would authorize President Trump to commission Americans to help defend our homeland.”

Burchett wrote in a post to the social media platform X that the legislation would allow Trump, “to commission privately armed and equipped individuals or groups to seize persons and property of any cartel, cartel member, or cartel-linked organization.”

The legislation cites Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution, which a federal government essay explains authorizes Congress “to issue letters of marque and reprisal, which are instruments that permit private citizens to capture or destroy enemy property, and permits Congress to authorize rules concerning captures of enemy property on land or at sea.”

Letters of marque and reprisal were most common during the maritime era of early United States history, according to Cornell Law School, which notes that during the Revolutionary War, the fledgling republic issued letters of marque to enlist merchant vessels to sink British ships.

While the practice was banned by an international treaty in 1856, and the United States has not authorized letters of marque since then, the legal website notes the United States did not sign the treaty and retains its legal power to issue letters of the marque in the modern era.

As Republicans in Congress seek to assist the Trump administration enact the president’s immigration agenda, reports have surfaced claiming that human smuggling cartels doubled their prices to transport illegal immigrants into the country in anticipation of Trump’s return to the White House.

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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Image “Rep. Tim Burchett” by Rep. Tim Burchett.