President-elect Donald Trump’s Senate Republican allies have defended his strategic desire to control the Panama Canal, Greenland and even Canada, while acknowledging they don’t know how serious he is about pursuing them.
“I don’t think he’s joking,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer, Republican of North Dakota. “I think he takes seriously the Panama Canal and what it cost us to give it away. But I don’t know how realistic it is to regain control or what it would take.”
He added: “I don’t really want to invade Denmark, but I think it’s hard to deny that Greenland would be a very nice strategic property if we could get it,” he said while adding that he did not think American troops should be used for these purposes.
“I certainly see Greenland as an opportunity, a tremendous addition to national security,” said Sen. Roger Marshall, Republican of Kansas. “The Panama Canal, I certainly understand President Trump’s concerns about China’s massive presence there. And it’s abused. This is a matter of national security. We’ll see what happens.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville, Republican of Alabama, said China was “all over the Panama Canal” and “we just sat back and played nice.” It’s time to expand. You know, it’s good to talk about it, whether it happens or not, who knows.
“Greenland minerals, I mean, that would set us apart,” Tuberville added. “And they’re close, they’re right next to Maine. It’s not like we have to go to Russia to get our minerals.”
“I understand the strategic importance of being in the Panama Canal,” said Wisconsin Republican Sen. Ron Johnson. “It was incredibly stupid to give away the Panama Canal.”
Sen. Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming was asked why Trump was talking about these issues after talking about the economy and border security.
“We live in a time of transformation, and transformative discussions should not be viewed as frivolous. However, my focus is on the border, overspending, inflation, things that voters considered important during the election,” she said.