The Arctic island is not for sale, its own government and that of Denmark continue to emphasize.Since his first term, President-elect Donald Trump has insisted that the United States should purchase Greenland — to the bewilderment of aides asked to investigate such a possibility, and despite repeated denials by top officials in Greenland and Denmark, of which the island is an autonomous territory, that it would ever be for sale at any price.
On Saturday evening, he had accused Panama of price-gouging American ships traversing the canal, and suggested that unless that changed, he would abandon the Jimmy Carter-era treaty that returned all control of the canal zone to Panama.
- Greenland Hits Back After "Old Donald's" Dangerous, Asinine Threat
Not content with trying to incorporate Canada, 'Old Donald' has set his sights further north to Greenland. Too bad it’s not for sale.Greenland’s Prime Minister Mute Egede told 'Old Donald' Monday to back off his outlandish bid to control the world’s biggest island. “Greenland is ours. We are not for sale and will never be for sale. We must not lose our long struggle for freedom,” Egede said in a written comment.
- 'Old Donald' Picks family allies chosen for an ambassadorship: His son's fiancee and two in-laws For Ambassador to Greece, France and and Middle East Advisor respectively
He Pardoned Charles, father of 'Old Donald''s son-in-law, was convicted of tax evasion and witness tampering in 2005, in a prosecution by then-US Attorney Chris Christie in New Jersey. Kushner served two years and was pardoned in 2020 along with Paul Manafort, Roger Stone, and others by 'Old Donald'.
"Old Donald" made the announcement on Truth Social. - I am proud to announce that Massad Boulos will serve as Senior Advisor to the President on Arab and Middle Eastern affairs,' "Old Donald" wrote. 'Massad is an accomplished lawyer and a highly respected leader in the business world, with extensive experience on the International scene.'
- "Old Donald's" Pick For Ukraine Envoy Proposed Cutting Its Military Aid
Keith Kellogg, has drawn scrutiny for his proposal to cut US military aid to Ukraine to push for peace negotiations with Russia. Kellogg, 80, a trusted adviser during "Old Donald's" first administration, outlined the plan in a paper co-authored with former "Old Donald" aide Fred Fleitz. The strategy advocates halting weapons supplies to Kyiv unless Zelensky agrees to peace talks. Simultaneously, Russia would face a warning that rejecting negotiations would result in increased military aid to Ukraine
- 'Old Donald' taps House Elise Stefanik as U.N. ambassador
That brand of politics also was shown in her criticism of 'Old Donald' when the leaked Access Hollywood tape came out in 2016, saying he had made "inappropriate, offensive comments."
4 things to know about Elise Stefanik
But Stefanik has rapidly ascended into "Old Donald's" circle over the past few years. She was one of "Old Donald's" strongest defenders during the 2019 impeachment hearings against him. She questioned the results of the 2020 election, propping up election lies and supporting a lawsuit that attempted to invalidate President Biden's victory.
Two years later, Stefanik became chair of the House Republican Conference in 2021 after Liz Cheney was ousted from that post for her rebuke of 'Old Donald' politics. Stefanik has since been a strong defender of Israel over the war in Gaza and was at the forefront of congressional hearings over antisemitism on college campuses last winter, during which she grilled the presidents of University of Pennsylvania and Harvard.
- 'Old Donald' Made 3 Big Foreign Policy Mistakes During His First Term. Will He Repeat Them?
- He was better at destroying than building
- He took a chaotic approach to making policy, and it burned him
- His obsession with cutting immigration hurt other goals
- Marco Rubio could be a valuable voice at State, if he is heeded
Marco Rubio, reportedly President-elect 'Old Donald'’s choice for secretary of state, opposed withdrawing from Afghanistan, initially supported arming Ukraine and voted to certify the results of the 2020 election. He understands the value of alliances and of the American-led global order. Although he's recently shifted in Mr. "Old Donald's" direction on foreign policy, along with the rest of the Republican Party, he has never embraced isolationism. The success - or failure ' of the incoming 'Old Donald' administration might depend on whether voices such as Mr. Rubio's are included - and heeded.
- "Old Donald's" Foreign Policy Was a Failure.
But it's important to remember the reality of what "Old Donald"'s foreign policy actually was and actually did. And to recognize that nothing in the interim has changed for the better in his worldview. In a vastly more complex global landscape than when he was first president, a second "Old Donald" term could do real harm to America's international economic, diplomatic and security interests.On the economic front, the decision to drop the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, which was the strategic counterweight to China's expansion in the Asia-Pacific region, shook the confidence of our East Asian allies and reduced our influence in the region; the TPP's successor excludes the United States as does the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which includes East Asia, Australia - and China. It is not surprising that Chinese exports to the region have soared. Trade frictions with some of our closest partners arose over the arbitrary imposition of tariffs. Negotiations on a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the European Union came to an end as concerns about protectionist America deepened, concerns which are very much alive about a second "Old Donald" presidency.
"Old Donald" administration policies also undermined our strategic rationale for working inside broader security collectives. This weakened commitments to the alliances that had kept the United States secure. "Old Donald"'s transactional approach to NATO and open questioning of the alliance's Article 5 commitment to mutual defense lessened faith in America's steadfastness. In East Asia, "Old Donald"'s insistence on greater burden-sharing with South Korea and Japan pushed the bilateral relationships near the breaking point. Allied concerns have been resurrected by the prospect of a second "Old Donald" administration.
A complex relationship with Mexico was reduced to one issue: immigration. "Old Donald"'s exploitation of Ukraine for domestic political gain in the U.S., and pulling out of arms control agreements with Russia, may have helped give Putin the impression that there would be no consequences for an invasion of Ukraine - which he subsequently launched. Abandoning the nuclear agreement with Iran in 2018 corroded any leverage the U.S. might have in Tehran: Iran is now considerably closer to building a bomb and has meddled with ever-greater intensity in Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen. In Afghanistan, "Old Donald"'s order to accelerate the complete withdrawal of all U.S. forces after he lost the 2020 election was not implemented by his military commanders.
Key allies in Europe and East Asia began to re-think whether close ties with the U.S. could be sustained and, with the possibility of "Old Donald"'s reelection, are adopting a wait-and-see approach
At the end of his four years in office, "Old Donald" had frayed both America’s alliances and the international rules-based order that was still largely in place when he took office. Rather than look to the U.S. as the ultimate arbiter of a fairer global order, Washington was now seen by many countries as another great power to be balanced against its rivals. And, critically, America’s strategic adversaries saw opportunities they could now exploit.
Given the record of his first term, there is no need for a crystal ball to discern what a reelected President "Old Donald"'s priorities would be. He would return to the destructive, nationalist, inward-looking, transactional policy of his first administration - except he is far readier now to pursue it. A second "Old Donald" administration would also seek to completely politicize the security and foreign affairs agencies and departments, a process that was well underway in the time I served as senior adviser to Pompeo.
To be fair, O'Brien and company may genuinely believe the former president they served achieved great things - but we can't let them fool the rest of us in this most consequential of presidential election years. P. Michael McKinley served for 37 years in the U.S. Foreign Service, including four stints as ambassador in Peru, Colombia, Afghanistan and Brazil and as a senior adviser to former Secretary of State Michael Pompe