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By Dan Gooding
Associate News Editor
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President Donald Trump may be losing some support in his party amid his continued threats to take over Greenland.
Nine Republican senators have so far spoken publicly against the idea, including Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell and Louisiana’s John Kennedy.
“Threats and intimidation by U.S. officials over American ownership of Greenland are as unseemly as they are counterproductive,” McConnell said in a statement Wednesday. “And the use of force to seize the sovereign democratic territory of one of America’s most loyal and capable allies would be an especially catastrophic act of strategic self-harm to America and its global influence.”
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Why It Matters
Greenland has been a target for Trump since his first term, but the idea of America seeking to influence, or control, other countries does not sit well with some Republicans. The president ran on a campaign promise of peace and to end wars rather than start them, but recent actions in Venezuela, Iran and now potentially Greenland are causing some supporters to doubt him.
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What To Know
Republicans in Congress appear divided over whether or not the U.S. should take control of the Danish territory, with Trump and others in the White House arguing that it is necessary for American national security and floating the possibility of military action to achieve the goal.
On Tuesday, Republican Senate Majority Leader John Thune downplayed the talk, telling reporters: “I don’t see military action being an option there.…That, to me, is not something anybody is contemplating seriously at this point.”
More GOP voices have emerged, including McConnell and Kennedy, with the latter telling CNN on Wednesday that “even a modestly intelligent ninth-grader knows that to invade Greenland would be weapons-grade stupid.”
Rand Paul, the Kentucky senator who has often criticized Trump, said on CBS Mornings that military action in Greenland would not happen under his watch.
“Party aside, the Constitution is clear: Congress authorizes war,” Paul said on X following the interview. “That safeguard exists for a reason—even when we agree with the outcome.”
Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said on X on Tuesday that she hoped Trump’s rhetorics was “nothing more than posturing,” adding that “any effort to claim or take the territory by force would degrade both our national security and our international relationships.”
Senator Jerry Moran of Kansas said this week that the U.S. should not “take over another country that’s our ally.”
That fear has been reflected by NATO leaders, who have issued multiple statements urging the U.S. not to put the bloc’s security and future at risk.
“This is a topic that should be dropped,” Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Roger Wicker of Mississippi said, adding that the Trump administration should not antagonize NATO allies.
Wicker’s colleague, Maine Senator Susan Collins, who chairs the Appropriations Committee, also said the Trump administration should drop the idea, saying: “It makes no sense whatsoever.”
North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis directly targeted White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and Trump Homeland Security Advisor Stephen Miller and his comments about Greenland, saying he was “sick of stupid,” adding that “the amateurs who said it’s a good idea [to invade Greenland] should lose their jobs.” Miller had said that no one was going to fight the U.S. militarily over Greenland and its future.
Utah Senator John Curtis took to X Wednesday to say military action was not the way forward.
“Strengthening our partnership with Denmark and Greenland and working with our allies to secure the Arctic is in America’s national interest,” he posted. “Military force is not appropriate, not necessary, and not something I will support. Full stop.”
The pushback from GOP members of Congress comes after Trump ordered military actions in Venezuela last week, capturing President Nicolas Maduro and his wife and transporting them to New York on federal charges without first seeking approval from Congress.
Trump has followed that by saying the U.S. will run Venezuela and have control over its oil production and profits, despite the initial operations in the area framed around drug-smuggling concerns.
The White House has said that Russian and Chinese vessels off the coast of Greenland are a concern, but the island is also rich in natural resources.
What People Are Saying
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Newsweek on Tuesday: "The President and his team are discussing a range of options to pursue this important foreign policy goal, and of course, utilizing the U.S. Military is always an option at the Commander in Chief’s disposal.”
Stephen Miller, on CNN on Monday: "Obviously, Greenland should be part of the United States."
United Kingdom Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, on Monday: “Let me be very clear on the U.K. position. Greenland is part of the Kingdom of Denmark, our close European partners and longstanding NATO allies. And all our countries work closely together on security issues and will always do so. The future of Greenland is a matter for the Greenlanders and Danes and no one else.”
Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen, on Monday night: “We are not in a situation where we think that there might be a takeover of the country overnight and that is why we are insisting that we want good cooperation."
What Happens Next
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to meet with Danish officials next week.
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