Last week, President-elect Donald Trump issued a series of threats to our neighbor to the north, Canada.
This weekend, he set his sights south.
In his remarks at this weekend’s Turning Point USA conference, Trump bemoaned the shipping costs of the Panama Canal.
“The fees being charged by Panama are ridiculous, highly unfair,” he said.
In a later post on Truth Social, Trump wrote, “The United States has a vested interest in the secure, efficient, and reliable operation of the Panama Canal … We would and will NEVER let it fall into the wrong hands! It was not given for the benefit of others but merely as a token of cooperation with us and Panama. If the principles, both moral and legal, of this magnanimous gesture of giving are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us, in full, without question.”
Trump’s remarks were quickly rebuked by Panama President José Raúl Mulino, who insisted that “every square meter” of the Panama Canal belongs to Panama.
Following pushback from Mulino, Trump posted a photo of an American flag stuck into a canal, with the caption “Welcome to the United States Canal!”
The Panama Canal is an artificial waterway connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Spanning 52 miles, work began on the canal in 1881.
In 1904, the U.S, took over work on the canal and eventually finished it. America maintained control of the canal until 1977, when President Jimmy Carter negotiated the return of the canal to Panama, while allowing the U.S. to defend the canal’s neutrality.
Responding to Trump’s remarks, conservative influencer Laura Loomer claimed she gave Trump the idea to take back control of the canal during his second term.
She wrote, “I posted in February that he should take back the Panama Canal, and I even told Trump so in person when I traveled to Panama and visited the Darien Gap and saw first-hand how China is trying to take over the canal and how it’s being used to facilitate illegal immigration.”
Trump also mentioned China in his rebuke on Truth Social.
“It was solely for Panama to manage, not China, or anyone else,” he said, an argument his followers swiftly adopted.
Wrote former Rep. Matt Gaetz, sharing an article about a Chinese company’s “de facto monopoly” over the shipping industry in Panama, “We aren’t taking the canal back from Panama. We are taking it back from China.”
Critics of the President-elect added this latest missive to his long list of threats to territories surrounding the U.S.
@RpsAgainstTrump wrote, “Since the election, Trump has been discussing: Annexing Canada, Seizing the Panama Canal, Buying or taking Greenland, Invading Mexico, Abandoning Ukraine, Starting trade wars with our allies.”
Those more skeptical of Trump tried to make an even more conspiratorial connection: between Trump’s Panama Canal plans and Jeff Bezos. The Amazon founder recently had dinner with Trump at Mar-a-Lago and donated $1 million donation to the President-elect’s inauguration fund.
Wrote one, “Amazon’s business relies heavily on predictable logistics including the timely and efficient transit of the Panama Canal. Reservations start at $50K per ship just to get in line. Others pay millions to skip ahead. Now do you understand Trump’s sudden interest? We’re so screwed.”
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