ByJames L. Henry – For more than 130 days, President Trump has waived the Jones Act, letting foreign ships carry cargo between American ports. Waiver advocates also argue the Jones Act fleet is fully booked anyway, so the waiver costs nothing. The American maritime industry commissioned PwC, one of the Big 4 accounting firms, to model what a long-term waiver would cost. The findings: up to 21,650 direct maritime jobs at risk, and 133,700 total jobs once supply-chain and induced effects are counted. The consumer-price argument, that the Jones Act raises costs in Hawaii, Alaska, and Puerto Rico, deserves a real answer, not a dismissal.