Sen. Young Encourages President Trump to Prioritize U.S. Shipbuilding

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) is part of a group of senators who have sent a letter to President Donald Trump encouraging him to prioritize the U.S. shipbuilding industry.

The Shipbuilding and Harbor Infrastructure for Prosperity and Security (SHIPS) for America Act is a bipartisan bill that was reintroduced in Congress to try to revitalize the U.S. maritime industry, strengthen national security, and boost commercial shipbuilding. Sen. Young has backed the SHIPS for America Act since it was first introduced in late 2024.

“We build no ships in this country,” Sen. Young said. “We build some Navy ships, but even those require some additional capacity.”

Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), and Tim Scott (R-S.C.) are also included in the letter to President Trump. The senators are urging the president to hold China accountable during his upcoming negotiations with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

According to Sen. Young, over the last 20 years, China has used unfair trade practices, which have decimated the U.S. shipbuilding industry, to become the dominant shipbuilding force around the world. This has ultimately hurt American workers and companies.

“If we have a vibrant commercial industry, we’ll have flex capacity in order to accommodate our national security needs and we can control our economic security during times of peace,” said Sen. Young.

China receives more than 60 percent of global commercial shipbuilding orders. Sen. Young also noted that just last year, the U.S. built one ocean-going vessel, while the Chinese have the capacity to build 1,000.

“We aim to build, over the next 10 years, 250 new commercial vessels, so that the Chinese don’t become the world’s premier shipbuilders,” he added.

Full text of the letter to President Trump can be found here.