Presidents who killed pirates - try Jefferson

There's a link making rounds showing how many pirates each president has killed. Obama has 3, and no one else has any.

To be fair, the "scale" doesn't go further back than McKinley. But anyone familiar with Barbary Wars knows that you can notch up dozens of pirate deaths to Thomas Jefferson. Most of those Barbary seamen who fought for Tripoli were pirates. Between attacks by Commodore Edward Preble and Lt.Stephen Decatur, as well as ship-on-ship attacks such as the victory of the USS Enterprise over the Tripoli on Aug. 1, 1804, you can credit Jefferson with more than 100 kills.

Daring raid frees American captain; 3 pirates killed

President Obama authorized an attack to rescue American hostage, Captain Richard Phillips. Navy SEAL snipers killed three of the pirates before swarming the craft and rescuing an unharmed Phillips.

Add that to the list of dramatic American assaults on pirates. These kind of low scale attacks, though risky, have proven themselves in the past. See my post about the raid Lt. Stephen Decatur led to destroy the USS Philadelphia, captured during the Barbary War, 1801 - 1805.

The name of the boat the SEALs were on when they attacked yesterday? The Bainbridge, named after the captain of the USS Philadelphia.