# Is Trump threatening to seize the Panama Canal? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [December 22, 2024, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000 "2024-12-22T01:31:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2024, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/122 "2024-12-28T23:27:27Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Directly? The same NATO countries that are currently directly attacking Russia. But they’ll still send support to Canada, or Panama, or anyone else we attack. How? how will any country send support to Canada? If the USN establishes a blockade of the Gulf of St Lawrence, Vancouver and Prince Rupert, how would any country send support to Canada? ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2024, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/123 "2024-12-28T23:42:56Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > If the USN establishes a blockade of the Gulf of St Lawrence, Vancouver and Prince Rupert “If”. I’m not convinced this nation’s military is capable of a large-scale blockade or controlling 5500 miles of border. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2024, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/124 "2024-12-28T23:55:32Z")
US military doctrine is to have the capacity to fight a two front-war in different parts of the world. Blockading their close neighbour, without any need for huge supply lines, would be easy, with the resources that the USN has. > As of 2021, there are an estimated 46 aircraft/helicopter carriers in service worldwide. The United States has 11 aircraft carriers and 9 “helo” carriers, nearly as many as all other countries combined, followed by [Japan](https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/japan) and [France](https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/france), each with four. Eleven other nations have at least one carrier, and several more are under construction. Source: [Aircraft carriers by country](https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/aircraft-carriers-by-country) Our geography has inherent choke points, unlike US geography. You have two coasts, with a series of harbours on the east coast and the west coast. We don’t. Most of our trade goes through the St Lawrence and Vancouver. Blockade those chokepoints, and you control access to Canada. The USN wouldn’t need to control huge coasts like you have, just the entrance to the St Lawrence and Vancouver harbour, which are pretty small targets. (yes, there’s Halifax harbour, which is a great port, but to get goods from Halifax to the interior of Canada, you ship by rail or truck. Look at the map of Maine, and how easy it would be for the US Army to cut that rail/road connection.) It sounds a bit odd to say that the US couldn’t blockade the land border with Canada, because how could a foreign country ship arms and matériel through US ports, then up to Canada across that border? How can they ship arms into the US, without the permission of the US itself? “Purpose of trip?” “To ship arms into Canada to use against your invading forces.” “Well, you’ve paid customs duties, so you’re clear. Have a nice trip.” ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2024, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/125 "2024-12-28T23:59:05Z")
If it was up to the Dumpster, he’d also try to take over the Suez Canal, the Bosporus, and the Strait of Gibraltar. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2024, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/126 "2024-12-29T00:04:44Z")
I think someone should tell him that we’re going to take control of the Erie Canal. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2024, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/127 "2024-12-29T00:19:22Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > US military doctrine is to have the capacity to fight a two front-war in different parts of the world. That’s the theory - but it’s been 80 years since it was last tested, and that was when we had dedicated our entire economy to the war and built up the largest fighting force in human history. Since then we haven’t faced an enemy on equal footing with us, and in more recent conflicts we spent 20 years trying to “spread democracy” to Afghanistan and couldn’t even get them to stop growing opium and practicing pederasty. Moreover, in this scenario we’ll have made international pariahs of ourselves and destroyed our traditional alliances, and international shipping is likely to suffer a major collapse that will cripple our industrial capacity. I don’t think it’s feasible. ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2024, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/128 "2024-12-29T02:01:24Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > I don’t think it’s feasible. Shame. It would give the Democrats the House. No, I do not really mean that 🙂 Obviously, Trump believes in making idle threats. While idle threats risk taking on a life of their own (Iraq Liberation Act of 1998), Panama would not only come before Greenland or Canada, but take years to digest. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2024, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/129 "2024-12-29T03:17:42Z")
I think trump would just blockade the canal until Panama came to its senses. _ **MAGA DELENDA EST!!!** _ ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2024, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/130 "2024-12-29T07:58:06Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Next should be **Cuba,** Philippines, etc. 🤪 [**Boldness** added.] It’s probably low on the priority list but I wouldn’t be surprised if Trump tried to concoct some excuse to invade Cuba (especially if Rubio becomes his Secretary of State). It would be his way of thanking Florida for voting solidly Republican and guaranteeing their control of the state for at least another 50 years. ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2024, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/131 "2024-12-30T23:27:43Z")
And now we interrupt a brief message from our sponsor “The fight against ignorance” As will surprise absolutely no one, Trumps claims that 38,000 (3,000 more than had died when he first made the claim, I guess they must have lingered on another 140 years) Americans died building the canal are off by about 2 orders of magnitude. About that many people died in the overall effort of building the canal and a precursor railroad but most of them were part of the French effort before the US took over. More significantly the vast majority in any case were neither French or American but grunt workers imported from the West Indies. Only about 300 Americans died. > **[More or Less - Did 35,000 Americans die building the Panama Canal? - BBC Sounds](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3ct5b6v)** > > We fact check a claim made by Donald Trump about the world famous canal We now return your to the political discussion already in progress. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2024, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/132 "2024-12-31T02:42:41Z")
Sounds like trump just has the decimal in the wrong place. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2025, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/133 "2025-01-01T06:46:17Z")
The concept of Fact Checking that asshole is actually pretty amusing. Kinda like Stink Checking a Port-a-Potty at a Juggalo Jamboree ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2025, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/134 "2025-01-01T06:56:23Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Kinda like Stink Checking a Port-a-Potty at a Juggalo Jamboree Comparing Trump to Juggalos is an insult to Juggalos. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2025, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/135 "2025-01-01T12:41:39Z")
True. They look cool in makeup and in general are pretty chill. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2026, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000/136 "2026-04-07T05:56:11Z")
And now there has been a large explosion near the Panama Canal, although rumors that it is closed are currently false. > **[Explosion sets fuel trucks on fire near Panama canal bridge; 4 injured, 1...](https://bnonews.com/index.php/2026/04/explosion-sets-fuel-trucks-on-fire-near-panama-canal-bridge-4-injured-1-missing/)** > > An explosion set multiple fuel trucks on fire near a major bridge at the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal, injuring four people and leaving another person missing, according to fire officials. Video from the scene showed a large fireball rising... [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-trump-threatening-to-seize-the-panama-canal/1012000.md?page=6)