MemphisAg1 said:

---

Sometimes his ideas fall flat or get passed off as loony, but more often than not he gets traction simply by daring to state them. So many politicians are incredibly timid and measured. Trump is unconstrained and speaks his mind without apology. I've seen this movie before, and I'm going to enjoy the second edition much more than the first. He's been proven right on so many issues that were initially regarded as laughable by the "mainstream," only to see time prove him right.

---

also by putting it out there it will force the Panamanians to give us a better deal

just like with the Canadians and Mexicans

LMCane said:

---

MemphisAg1 said:

---

Sometimes his ideas fall flat or get passed off as loony, but more often than not he gets traction simply by daring to state them. So many politicians are incredibly timid and measured. Trump is unconstrained and speaks his mind without apology. I've seen this movie before, and I'm going to enjoy the second edition much more than the first. He's been proven right on so many issues that were initially regarded as laughable by the "mainstream," only to see time prove him right.

---

also by putting it out there it will force the Panamanians to give us a better deal

just like with the Canadians and Mexicans

---

Exactly. It goes back to the Art of the Deal. You throw out some crazy possible worst case ("You have a really nice country here...it'd be a shame if we had to turn it into the 51st state") to let them ponder how bad things could get (if Trump really is as crazy as their fever dreams make them think he is). Then you come back with an offer that gives you what you really want and has enough in there for them to make them willing to work with you to iron out the final agreement. He does it with threats of tariffs to get better trade deals, he used it to get Europe to start spending more on defense by talking about pulling out of NATO, etc. etc. If anybody isn't aware of that being part of his MO, they haven't been paying attention.

route canals

txags92 said:

---

LMCane said:

---

MemphisAg1 said:

---

Sometimes his ideas fall flat or get passed off as loony, but more often than not he gets traction simply by daring to state them. So many politicians are incredibly timid and measured. Trump is unconstrained and speaks his mind without apology. I've seen this movie before, and I'm going to enjoy the second edition much more than the first. He's been proven right on so many issues that were initially regarded as laughable by the "mainstream," only to see time prove him right.

---

also by putting it out there it will force the Panamanians to give us a better deal

just like with the Canadians and Mexicans

---

Exactly. It goes back to the Art of the Deal. You throw out some crazy possible worst case ("You have a really nice country here...it'd be a shame if we had to turn it into the 51st state") to let them ponder how bad things could get (if Trump really is as crazy as their fever dreams make them think he is). Then you come back with an offer that gives you what you really want and has enough in there for them to make them willing to work with you to iron out the final agreement. He does it with threats of tariffs to get better trade deals, he used it to get Europe to start spending more on defense by talking about pulling out of NATO, etc. etc. If anybody isn't aware of that being part of his MO, they haven't been paying attention.

---

So much this. It's amusing at this point to watch liberals get emotionally charged with something he throws out there without even a hint of understanding that this is how he does things. We've spent the past month hearing how tariffs will lead to inflation without even a suggestion that he's negotiating and we're a long way from actually seeing any tariffs. Now I'm guessing we'll be treated to wild speculation that he wants to invade Panama and take back the canal by force, all from unnamed sources of course and without even a a little acknowledgment that he's the most peace oriented president we've had this century.

Yes, but TDS is a powerful disease.

LMAO.

Eric Trump just posted this. pic.twitter.com/BuoNSE06Y3

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) December 24, 2024

Merry Christmas to all, including to the wonderful soldiers of China, who are lovingly, but illegally, operating the Panama Canal (where we lost 38,000 people in its building 110 years ago), always making certain that the United States puts in Billions of Dollars in “repair”…

— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) December 25, 2024

Something tells me Trump's not gonna let this one gone.

Ag87H2O said:

---

He's not wrong. It was nuts to give it to Panama. At a minimum U.S. military vessels should have the right of free and priority passage in perpetuity, and American owned cargo vessels passage at a greatly reduced rate. We should have also demanded a permanent military base in close proximity to the canal.

---

Another bone headed move by President Jimmy Carter.
Panama takes control of the Canal, Dec. 31, 1999
quote from the article

• At noon on this day in 1999, the U.S. government, in keeping with a pair of treaties signed on Sept. 7, 1977, by President Jimmy Carter

edit: nevermind, I was late posting as this was pointed out several times previously in this thread.