On May 9, 2025, Donald Trump announced a proclamation to reopen 4,913 square miles of Atlantic Ocean off New England’s coast to commercial fishing, overturning restrictions imposed by the Obama-Biden regime.
The area, dubbed the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, and initially locked down in 2016 by Barack Obama, is located 130 miles southeast of Cape Cod, and encompass underwater canyons and volcanic seamounts teeming with corals, sea turtles, and whales. The “lockdown” came in the form of a dubious Obama executive order, issued under the equally dubious Antiquities Act of 1906, and it banned commercial fishing in the zone, claiming to “preserve biodiversity” (without explaining what that meant) without citing any constitutional power to seize the area, and without explaining how the political class has any ethical or moral authority to tell you to pay for the seizure and blockage of fishing and other interests in the area.
It took Donald Trump to roll back these restrictions in 2020, only for Joe Biden to reinstate them in 2021. Now, Trump’s latest proclamation aims to “unleash” fishing again, with supporters like New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte praising the removal of “burdensome regulations” that have kneecapped lobstermen and fishermen. Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s Press Secretary, called it a “promise kept” to New England’s fishing communities, and as NHJournal reports, a White House Fact Sheet released ahead of the signing stated:
"President Trump is committed to removing unnecessary restrictions on American fishermen in order to strengthen the US economy, support coastal communities, and restore fairness to an industry disadvantaged by overregulation and unfair foreign competition."
All of which is a positive for many locals and numerous industries reliant on the area. But there are important facets of this development that merit greater analysis, in order to see why complete celebration might be premature.
Related: Supreme Court Rulings Curb Regulatory Agency Powers: A Win For Fishermen
To understand the stakes, we must ground ourselves in the U.S. Constitution, the document that delineates federal power. Article I, Section 8, Clause 17 explicitly limits federal land control to three categories: a ten-square-mile district for the national capital (Washington, D.C.), territories (pre-statehood areas), and military garrisons (forts, arsenals, dockyards). Nowhere does the Constitution grant the federal government authority to control “national parks,” “national monuments,” of vast swaths of ocean, let alone to dictate fishing practices on the water. The Antiquities Act runs counter to the Constitution, yet Obama and Biden claimed it gave them the magic power to lock up nearly 5,000 square miles of ocean.
The feds have shown that they don’t pay attention to the core of their rule book, and, as a result, Americans are at the mercy of chameleonic federal diktats virtually every time a new President takes office.
Beyond the “Northeast Canyons and Seamounts” fishing ban, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) still imposes a litany of regulations that choke the industry.
Take the “Fish Counter” mandate that only was half-addressed by the Supreme Court last year.
As I mentioned in my MRCTV report on “Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo”, the court majority found in favor of the plaintiffs, northeastern fishermen who long had been forced by the feds to admit federal agents on their boats to “count” the numbers of certain kinds of fish they catch, and who, after years of that oppression, were told by the US government to PAY the SALARIES of the government goons claiming access to their boats.
We’re talking about a violation of the spirit of the Third Amendment, which prohibits the government from quartering troops on our property, yet, the “regulatory government” got away with it, and the only facet of the egregious attack on rights that the Court struck down was the new “pay for it, as well” mandate the feds tried to impose.
These “close, but no cigar” moves by judges leave Americans at the mercy of government whim, with no hope for the feds to really adhere to the document that created the federal branches in the first place. They impose high costs on businesses and consumers, and open the door to a feedback loop of influence-peddling, seeing businesses incentivized to try to lobby Congress or nudge the government to favor them over domestic or foreign competitors.
The claims of federal “ocean control” have become so absurd, in 2023, NOAA imposed a 10-knot speed limit on vessels over 35 feet in certain Atlantic zones, citing the need to protect endangered right whales. This rule, extended through 2024, slows charter boats ferrying clients to fishing grounds, slashing the number of trips and revenue. For small operators, this isn’t just a nuisance—it’s a death knell.
And these are just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. Federal quotas, gear restrictions, and seasonal bans further hamstring fishermen, driving up costs and pushing the U.S. to import over two-thirds of its seafood. Trump’s proclamation will help a sector of the US economy that generates over $300 billion in sales annually.
But the move, while welcome, doesn’t dismantle the underlying machinery of federal control. The Antiquities Act remains a tool for future presidents to reimpose restrictions. NOAA’s regulatory web still entangles fishermen, and the constitutional question of federal overextension remains unaddressed. The 1906 law was never intended to govern oceans; its use here is a creative fiction that bypasses the Constitution.
The Constitution’s limits are clear, yet successive administrations have ignored them, piling costs onto fishermen while preaching conservation. True reform would require Congress to reclaim its authority, repeal or clarify the Antiquities Act, and curb NOAA’s regulatory zeal. Until then, fishermen may celebrate this reprieve, but the specter of federal control looms large.
In the end, the fight isn’t just about 4,913 square miles of ocean. It’s about whether individuals can pursue their livelihoods free from arbitrary dictates. Fishermen aren’t asking for handouts; they’re asking to fish.
Let’s hope this proclamation is a harbinger of liberty, not a fleeting tease before the net tightens again.
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Rosie O'Donnell complains she's having anxiety-induced insomnia after moving to Ireland to escape President Trump's America.
— MRCTV (@mrctv) May 14, 2025
Could she be any more of a crybaby? https://t.co/FbPAaOYYOv
