Trump looks to turn back the clock on the Panama Canal [Video]

Control of the Panama Canal, once a key U.S. presidential campaign issue for Ronald Reagan and an animating topic for people ranging from film legend John Wayne to an unpredictable Canadian-born U.S. senator, has seemingly made a comeback as a hot-button topic in Washington.

President-elect Donald Trump has let loose on the campaign trail and during the transition with a series of complaints, sometimes inaccurate, concerning Panama’s administration of the key passage that help ships navigate between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans in a much less time-consuming fashion than would otherwise be the case. 

“About 40 per cent of U.S.-destined container trade goes through the Panama Canal, so it is in the nation’s commercial …