Transcription
IN ANY OTHER ADMINISTRATION, the president of the United States saying this on the world stage would be huge, blaring, front page, you couldn't avoid it kind of news. Usually they say he's a horrible dictator type person, I'm a dictator. But sometimes you need a dictator.
Now, that of course was the man who currently occupies the Oval Office saying sometimes you need a dictator. And basically own HE SAYS IT IS A DISTURBING SENTIMENT FROM THE MAN WHO IS SUPPOSED TO BE LEADING THE WORLD'S MOST POWERFUL DEMOCRACY. SO WHY DIDN'T THAT STATEMENT DOMINATE ALL THE HEADLINES TODAY? WE HERE ARE TALKING ABOUT IT, BUT WHY DIDN'T IT DOMINATE THE HEADLINES?
WELL, IN PART, BECAUSE WE ALREADY KNOW HE SEES HIMSELF AS A DICTATOR BASED ON HIS TYRANNICAL APPROACH TO GOVERNING, AND ALSO BECAUSE ON THE SAME DAY, at the World Economic Forum in Davos when he proudly owned up to being a dictator, his shocking disconnection from reality was also on full display in the speech. I mean, today before an audience of world leaders, Trump rambled for over an hour, railing against our allies, including the host nation of Switzerland, insulting Joe Biden, lamenting that windmills are losers, and also reiterating his plans to take over Greenland.
Of Of course, Trump has been obsessed with the idea of the U.S. taking control of Greenland for nearly a decade. The man has been fixated on it since his first term. I mean, Donald Trump has given more thought to annexing Greenland, I think it's safe to say that he has given to most geopolitical issues, which is why it was so remarkable when today Donald Trump could not seem to remember exactly which territory he has long been completely obsessed with annexing.
"I'm helping NATO and until the last few days when I told them about Iceland, they loved me. They called me daddy, right? Last time, very smart man said he's our daddy. He's running it. I was like running it. I went from running it to being a terrible human being. But now what I'm asking for is a piece THAT IS A PIECE OF ICE, COLD AND POORLY LOCATED THAT CAN PLAY A VITAL ROLE IN WORLD PEACE AND WORLD PROTECTION."
"Hey, Daddy, I have a I thought the territory you I thought the territory that you wanted to take over is Greenland, not Iceland. You can see them on the map they're two different countries. But, hey, we all make mistakes from time to time, a slip of the tongue. It's not like you repeated that mistake over and over again in front of the entire would be there for us, right?"
So with all of the money we expend, with all of the blood, sweat and tears. I don't know that they'd be there for us. They're not there for us on Iceland. That I can tell you. I mean, our stock market took the first dip yesterday because of Iceland. So that's not over and over again.
Trump referred to the territory he wanted to take over as Iceland in front of a bunch of world leaders, which again is an entirely different country and entirely different island, which means there is now an entirely different population sitting around wondering if the American president is GOING TO TRY AND ANNEX THEIR HOME BECAUSE HE CAN'T REMEMBER WHAT WORD COMES BEFORE LAND ON THE MAP OF ALLIED NATIONS HE WANTS TO CLAIM FOR HIMSELF.
But, hey, I mean, maybe Trump is just feeling sleepy again. We know that that happens, probably just tired from his long trip to Switzerland. I bet if we went back and listened to his nearly two-hour tour de force in the White House briefing room yesterday, you'd find a much more cogent version of what he is trying to what are you going to say? As an example, Iceland without tariffs, they wouldn't even be talking to us. But Iceland again. I mean, Donald Trump, he says he is not going to he literally cannot remember which country he has long wanted to invade.
Remember, this is the guy who claims he is going to start it's not going to start a new doctrine, Don Roe Doctrine, I don't even know how to say that. I don't want to know how I want to say that, of U.S. control over the entire Western half of the globe. Of the globe. S A Uruguay and a Paraguay. What is he going to do?
Now, given the international crisis that Trump's Greenland ambitions have set off, his repeated flub obviously caused the attention of reporters in the room. And News Nation's Libby Dean posted this from the event. Quote, "During his World Economic Forum remarks, President Trump appeared to mix up Greenland and Iceland around three times." Look, I just showed you them. You just saw them on your screen. That's a very straightforward description of what we all witnessed. WE WERE TALKING ABOUT WHAT WE ALL HEARD WITH OUR OWN EYES, WHAT WE ALL HEARD WITH OUR OWN EARS.
But since this administration will not abide by any reporting that doesn't sound like like a North Korean state media broadcast, Trump's press secretary immediately fired back. Quote, "No, he didn't, Libby. His written remarks referred to Greenland as a piece of ice because that's what it is. You're the only one mixing anything up here." OK, as a sidebar, your written remarks have nothing to do with what you say repeatedly publicly out of your mouth of the president of the United States. So that doesn't address it. But there's that's what that is. That's what the press secretary.
So I realize that the American right has just spent the last few weeks trying to convince us that what we see on videotape is not actually the God's honest truth, what we see with our own eyes. But this is really kind of another level of THERE'S NO SPECIAL CAMERA ANGLE OR SELECTIVE EDIT OR SPIN THAT CAN MAKE YOU BELIEVE THIS IS ANYTHING OTHER THAN WHAT IT WAS. THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES SAYING THE TALK ABOUT THE WORLD, I CELAND, OVER AND OVER AGAIN.
"When I told them about Iceland, they loved me. They're not there for us. I don't want to tell you, I can tell you. I mean, our stock market took the first dip yesterday because of Iceland. So Iceland already cost us a lot of money. Iceland is not Greenland. Greenland is not Iceland. You don't have to be an expert in foreign policy to know that. Anyone who has ever glanced at a map could tell you that. I mean, anyone who may have watched my dad's X 2 could also tell you that."
"I thought Iceland was covered with ice. Ice light? No, it's very green. I thought Greenland was green. Greenland is covered with ice and Iceland is very nice." Listen, listen, anyone out there who knows anyone in the White House, if you're trying to help him get it straight, that video is available. You can find it. And maybe it's in his terms, but that's really where we are. Everyone. I mean, a kid's movie from the '90s is literally operating at a higher level of geographical understanding than the president of the United States right now. And God love him, there are still too many people in the American press who are trying to analyze all of this through some serious foreign policy lens where words are chosen with intention and delicate diplomatic meaning."
I mean, today during that same event, Donald Trump also said this about his plans for Greenland. "We probably won't get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force where we would be frankly unstoppable, but I won't do that." Okay. Now everyone's saying, oh, good. Now let's hope that's the case. And certainly that's what we should all hope for.
Immediately after Trump made those comments, news organizations everywhere started running with headlines like this: Trump rules out using military force to acquire Greenland in Davos speech. Trump says he will not use force to acquire Greenland. Trump rules out using force to acquire Greenland. Now, let's hope again that's the case. But Trump literally started that sentence with, "We probably won't get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force where we would be frankly CERTIFICALLY UNSTOPPABLE." THAT PHRASE, THAT SOUNDS TO ME A LITTLE BIT MORE LIKE A MOB BOSS TELLING YOU HE DOESN'T THEN A PRESIDENT COMPLETELY RULING OUT MILITARY ACTION.
Needless to say, none of this is reasoned, while thought-out diplomacy. But some people still insist on on acting like it all is. Remember that it was just four days ago that Trump threatened to slap steep tariffs on eight European countries because the continent had refused to recognize his ridiculous claim to Greenland. That sent the stock market crashing as investors grappled with the idea that Trump was planning to effectively punish people in his own country by raising prices in order to pressure the rest of the world to give him part of another. TRUMP HAS NOTHING MORE THAN CREATING A FAKE CRISIS IN ORDER TO SWOOP IN AND BEHAVE LIKE HE IS SOLVING THE CRISIS THAT HE CREATED.
So today, after his long-winding speech, the president took to social media to announce that he had met with the leader of NATO and, quote, "formed the framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland" and that he would, quote, "not be imposing the tariffs." And if we needed any more proof that this was all some sort of BS face-saving effort, just listen to the way Trump described his so-called deal in an interview with CNBC just moments later.
"Well, we have a concept of a deal. It looks like we have pretty much a concept of a deal. A deal of ownership? A deal? Well, it's a little bit complex, but we'll explain it down the line." A little complex. We'll explain it down the line. That's not guys out of policy wonk.
And yet his complete lack of detail for a fake plan designed to solve a crisis he created did not stop some Fox commentators from treating him like a conquering hero, historic national security figure. "It's really hard not to see this through the lens of the art of the deal. A lot of this is classic Donald Trump negotiating status. He goes in, the bull in the China shop, people think he's going to use force. Then when he takes force off the table, they're all like, phew. Love and hate him or hate him. When he leaves that room, everybody there felt like America First threw up all over them."
I mean, I can't argue that last point, I suppose. But unfortunately for the Fox News crowd, things got a little awkward when the very NATO leader Trump claims to have inked this deal with went on the very same network to tell the very same viewers what is really in this deal. "What I don't hear is Greenland still is it's still under the kingdom of Denmark in this framework deal. That issue did not come up anymore in my conversations tonight with Mr. President. Didn't come up. Trump did not mention Greenland."
I guess it sounds like well, negotiating his supposed Greenland deal. Did he forget about the reason he caused this diplomatic crisis in the first place? Did he accidentally make a deal to acquire Iceland? Or can we all accept the obvious truth that Trump once again chickened out and walked it all back? I mean, and I'm fine with that. In this case, in most cases of things he's out there blasting around he's going to do.
See, all Trump has managed to do with his ridiculous Greenland obsession is further destroy America's relationships with some of our closest allies. And it's left to serious long, it's left to serious lawmakers to try.