Debate and Diplomacy: The Panama Canal Treaties

Treaty Ratification: The Senate Debate

Each side of the debate had compelling reasons for supporting or opposing the treaties:

Support

The Carter Administration strived to:


  • Rectify the injustice of keeping the Panama Canal away from Panamanian control, when in fact the U.S. never had sovereignty over the Canal
  • Promote better relations with all of Latin America

Opposition

The conservative New Right and the public majority believed that:

  • the Panama Canal was American-built and funded, and should be American-owned
  • the U.S. would be more secure by maintaining economic and military control over the Canal
“From the point of view of the United States we are confident that this treaty will not only protect but strengthen our national security interests. It will also be a strongly positive element in our overall relationship with our Latin American neighbors and preserve our common interest in an open, secure, and efficient canal.”                                                                                 
~Ellsworth Bunker, who negotiated for the treaties with Panama for over ten years
 “This is no time for America to abandon a claim to a symbol of our national resolve and a vital safeguard of economic and military security for the entire free world. There must be no surrender in Panama.”
                                                     ~Surrender in Panama: The Case Against the Treaties
Picture
Click picture to move to "Support"