Gimenez calls Trump Panama threats 'legitimate'

Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-Fla.) on Monday called President-elect Trump’s recent threats about the Panama Canal “legitimate.”

“I always take the president seriously, and it’s … [a] legitimate threat to Panama,” Gimenez told Fox Business's Ashley Webster on “Varney and Co.” when asked if the U.S. had a chance at getting the Panama Canal “back.”

“He wants a better deal, and I think we need to get a better deal from — from Panama,” he added.

On Saturday, Trump expressed frustration via Truth Social with the fees charged for the use of the Panama Canal, asserting that he would stipulate oversight of the canal return to the U.S. when he comes back into the White House if that is not changed.

“The fees being charged by Panama are ridiculous, especially knowing the extraordinary generosity that has been bestowed to Panama by the U.S.,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “This complete ‘rip-off’ of our Country will immediately stop.”

The following day, at an event for the conservative group Turning Point USA, Trump said the canal "was given to Panama and to the people of Panama, but it has provisions, you gotta treat us fairly and they haven't treated us fairly."

“If the principles, both moral and legal, of this magnanimous gesture of giving are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to the United States of America in full, quickly and without question,” he added.

Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino swung back at the president-elect in a video statement Sunday.

“As president, I want to express clearly that every square meter of the Panama Canal and its adjacent zone belongs to Panama, and will continue to do so,” Mulino said. “The sovereignty and independence of our country are not negotiable.”

In his Fox Business appearance Monday, Gimenez said Trump "very well could be right, that — that we're getting ripped off" when it comes to the Panama Canal.