If we’re talking about crimes like “bribing a public official”, it’s less so. There are countries where that is simultaneously 1) technically illegal by that country’s own laws, 2) absolutely an expected and required part of doing business. So what do you do in that case?
[0]. Arms-length, third-party, paper-trail-negative contractors.
Sounds lucrative.
Not quite.
You may be thinking of the “grease payment” exception [1] to the FCPA [2]. Customariness isn’t as important as whether the payment is to speed up a decided outcome or effect the outcome.
[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facilitating_payment
[2] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_Corrupt_Practices_Ac...
You just don't do business in such countries? Why do you want to work with corrupt regimes so much?
whereas if you bribe public officials in other countries as normal business practice, that might give you an advantage over other companies that also operate in the US. if they have to also engage in bribery to compete with you, that seems like a much more direct harm to another US entity.
my point is that the jurisdiction of the US criminal justice system should be limited to the US. if people do things in another country that demonstrably harm US residents, that's fair game. otherwise, it seems like an overreach for the US to enforce laws that might not even exist in other countries. just my opinion, you don't have to agree.
This would make it very easy for Americans to be mercenaries and assassins for foreign governments.