If President Thomas Jefferson had dispatched the U.S. Navy to the Mediterranean Sea and landed the Marines in Tripoli to protect Danish ships operating under the flag of Singapore transporting cargo from Asia to Europe, he would have been set on fire on the front lawn of Monticello.
“In 1783, America was protecting AMERICAN shipping interests.”
They still are. It just so happens that the unions killed our merchant fleet so our cargoes travel on lines like Maersk. Maersk is the #1 shipper for the US military and their safety is most assuredly an American interest.