Could a National Guard member become a longshoreman in a pinch?
According to The Washington Post, the White House has been evaluating whether guardsmen could be deployed in various capacities, including at ports, to help ease the global shipping logjam supercharging the boxship market.
The report said the plan is unlikely to proceed "as of now", but outlined that the Biden administration had explored how National Guard members could be used, including at ports and driving trucks.
Demand for consumer goods has strengthened during the pandemic, putting stress on supply chains worldwide.
According to automatic identification system data, at least 30 boxships are at anchor near the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach in California, and reportedly dozens more are waiting, along with a cluster of others on the east coast near Savannah, Georgia.
The administration has created task forces to look at the issue and empowered the Federal Maritime Commission to investigate potential unfair practices from liner operators eager to get boxes back across the Pacific Ocean to China.
Globally, the disruption has forced several top liner operators to cap fees, major companies to charter their own ships and charterers to use bulkers to carry containers.
Concerns have cropped up over whether the supply chain can get moving quickly enough ahead of the holiday shopping season.
On 13 October, President Joe Biden announced that the Port of Los Angeles would be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week to ease the congestion.
