OAN Staff Taylor Tinsley
6:36 PM – Thursday, July 31, 2025
Fishermen, charter captains and coastal leaders across the country are calling on President Donald Trump to save the domestic fishing industry.
Organizers of the Make America Fish Again (MAFA) movement assert that from Maine to Key West, the American fishing industry has been devastated by large scale foreign companies stealing U.S. natural resources from the Atlantic Coast and Gulf of America.
“Only the Lord can Save More Fish Than Donald Trump,” said Vinnie Calabro, Owner of Karen Ann Charters and Commercial Striped Bass Fisherman.
Specifically, those treading the seas want President Trump to sign an executive order ending reduction fishing of forage fish in the Atlantic Coast and Gulf of America.
Forage fish, also known as bait fish, serve as the foundation of the ocean food chain. They are a critical source for tuna, cod, striped bass, whales and more.
“This overharvesting is being controlled by a Canadian owned company (Omega Protein) to the detriment of U.S. citizens,” said Phil Zalesak, President of the Southern Maryland Recreational Fishing Organization. “This action will reestablish a $10 million stripe bass business base industry on the Atlantic coast and lead to the employment of thousands of fisherman and business owners along the coast.
MAFA contends the operations are putting 2.3 million American jobs, the $321 billion domestic fishing economy, and the future of American fishing at risk.
Steve Atkinson, chairman of the Virginia Saltwater Sportfishing Association, laments that every East Coast state has banned large-scale menhaden fishing except for Virginia, leaving the Chesapeake Bay heavily impacted throughout the summer.
“What do you think would happen if we did not have 51,000 metric tons, or 112 million pounds, of menhaden removed from the bay every year to the benefit of the Canadians?” Atkinson asked.
He also pointed out 2024 data showing the reproductive rate of Ospreys in the Chesapeake Bay dropped to less than 0.6. The minimum reproductive rate needs to be 1.15 or greater.
Omega Protein denies fault for the drop-in reproduction. In a letter to the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) this week, the Canadian company’s senior scientific advisor, Peter Himchak, criticized recent recommendations made by ASMFC’s World Group on Precautionary Management in the Chesapeake Bay.
“The group charged forward with draconian management recommendations ‘without determining if there is or is not an adequate supply of menhaden to support predatory demand in the Bay,’” Himchak wrote, calling for a broader investigation.
In early July, President Trump and his son, Donald Trump Jr., shared a MAFA video on Truth Social and X, highlighting the strain that foreign fishery operations are placing on American fishermen.
Calabro said he recently spoke with the president and suggested he has expressed support to sign an executive order.
Fishermen and coastal leaders are also pushing for the president in an executive order to:
- Ban midwater trawls for forage species
- Direct the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and federal agencies to manage forage fish for the ecosystem
- Set science-based targets to ensure predators have enough food
MAFA says President Trump has the chance to usher in the Golden Era of American fishing.
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