Original air date: February 9th 2025
Speak softly and carry a big stick. That’s how President Teddy Roosevelt described his policy in Latin America. President Trump seems to be following the ‘Big Stick’ policy in his suggestions to take back the Panama Canal, that the US built under Roosevelt. The region is so important to commerce and national security, it’s the first foreign trip taken by Secretary of State Marco Rubio.. And for that reason, we sent Scott Thuman to report on Panama’s place and importance in the new Trump administration.
The following is a transcript of a report from “Full Measure with Sharyl Attkisson.”
Watch the video by clicking the link at the end of the page.
Even as Secretary of State Marco Rubio made Panama his first official foreign trip, President Trump doubling down on his calls to change the way the canal does business with America, or face the possibility of real consequences.
President Trump: What they’ve done is terrible, they’ve violated the agreement, they’re not allowed to violate the agreement. China’s running the Panama Canal, it was not given to China, it was given to Panama foolishly, but they violated the agreement and we’re going to take it back or something very powerful is going to happen.
The Trump rhetoric right out of the gate from the new administration pointing to a focus on American interests close to home.
In this case, a century old canal, still a critical point of international trade, and now national security. The canal – a 50 mile waterway joining the Atlantic with the Pacific oceans. Cutting thousands of miles off shipping routes.
One after another, a procession of ships crosses in just 10 hours but with limited space it’s not a cheap route, costing from a few thousand to hundreds of thousands per vessel depending on size and cargo. All earning Panama nearly $3.5 billion in profit last fiscal year.
Originally built and controlled by the United States for decades, Panama was given full control in 1999. In recent years, fees for crossing have risen.
President Trump: The fees being charged by Panama are ridiculous, highly unfair, especially knowing the extraordinary generosity that has been bestowed to Panama, I say very foolishly by the United States.
On Wednesday, the state department said US government ships will no longer be charged to use the canal, a deal the Panamanians said was not sealed.
On Thursday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth agreed with Panama’s president to increase joint military cooperation, to protect the canal against external threats.
Scott: Can I just get your initial reaction when you heard President Trump say what he did about the Panama Canal?
Jorge Quijano: Well, first of all, I was surprised, amazed.
Jorge Quijano ran the canal authority between 2012 and 2019.
Quijano: And once the people of the United States, we’ve always had a great relationship, understand that everything that is being said is not true.
Beyond rising fees, Trump is bothered by China’s growing relationship with Panama, he says another violation of the treaty. Prompting debate and hearings on Capitol Hill.
Sen. Ted Cruz: We cannot stay idle while China is on the march in our hemisphere.
There’s been a lot of confusion about President Trump’s comments that China runs the Panama Canal, here’s the situation on the Pacific entryway side, just across the water there is the Balboa Port, that port is operated by a company that’s based in Hong Kong, China. The concerns expressed by the White House are that if there were a supply chain war, or a trade war with China, they could order that port to be shut down to American access and this very narrow entryway to the Panama Canal, or worse, use vessels to form a blockade, or worse, use vessels to form a blockade.
That perceived threat to national security, raised in the president’s inaugural address:
President Trump: China is operating the Panama Canal and we didn’t give it to China, we gave it to Panama, and we’re taking it back.
Scott: What about the talk regarding China, the assertion that China somehow has control here or would have great control if it wanted to?
Quijano: Where is it coming from, because of the two ports that we have, one on the Atlantic and one on the Pacific? Most of the vessels that go to this port are not owned by Chinese but are run by either European countries or Japanese countries.
And by the end of the week the engagement went all the way to the top with President Trump and Panama’s President Mulino set to engage in a direct call, to calm the waters over the Panama Canal.
For Full Measure, I’m Scott Thuman in Panama.
Watch video here.
