Trump's Panama gambit spurs controversy

[Judi Lynn]

6 JANUARY 2025

By Imran Khalid

Donald Trump swept to victory on promises to retreat from the foreign entanglements that had defined recent US presidencies, vowing instead to champion American industry, slap tariffs on imports and revive the nation’s manufacturing base.

Yet, the brash rhetoric that fuelled his campaign has evolved into a far more assertive posture, suggesting a recalibration of his isolationist doctrine.

Recent remarks from the president-elect hint at a broader, muscular approach to asserting US influence abroad, underscoring contradictions between his rhetoric and emerging policy signals.

Trump, ever a provocateur on social media, ignited controversy with a quip about Canada as the US’s “51st state”, revived murmurings about reclaiming the Panama Canal and resurrected his fascination with acquiring Greenland, a move Denmark, its sovereign, has repeatedly dismissed as absurd.

Although most regard these statements as performative bluster, they nevertheless reflect an undercurrent of a more aggressive “America First” agenda, where the projection of power underpins economic and security goals.

More:
https://mg.co.za/thought-leader/opinion/2025-01-06-trumps-panama-gambit-spurs-controversy/

[Walleye]

1. "A broader muscular approach" expect more of this macho type language

[IbogaProject]

2. Swept??

He won by ~280,000 votes less than 0.25% of the total vote, hardly a "sweep".