A U.S. congressman introduced a bill to the House of Representatives this week that would not only greenlight President Donald Trump’s purchase of Greenland, but see the autonomous Danish territory renamed “Red, White, and Blueland.”
The proposed Act of the same name, introduced by Georgia Republican Rep. Earle “Buddy” Carter, would give the president permission to “enter into negotiations” with Denmark’s government to buy or “otherwise acquire” the mostly ice-covered, but mineral-rich and strategically located landmass.
While Trump voiced benign interest in the acquisition during his first presidency, it has become a legitimate desire that has been reinforced since his election in November. Citing increasing threats from a growing Russian and Chinese presence in the Arctic region, the president has said the U.S. needs it for “purposes of national security.”
He has said he’d use tariffs on Denmak to achieve this goal and hasn’t ruled out using military force.
Meanwhile, Danish officials, including Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenland Prime Minister Mute Egede, have emphatically and repeatedly said the land and its people are part of the Kingdom of Denmark and will never be on the market.
That seems to matter little to Carter.
“America is back and will soon be bigger than ever with the addition of Red, White, and Blueland,” he wrote in a statement endorsing Trump’s security reasoning.
“We will proudly welcome its people to join the freest nation to ever exist when our Negotiator-in-Chief inks this monumental deal.”
Like the change of Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America, the law would require the government to modify the name in all laws, maps, regulations, documents and other official references to the region.
In response, Parliamentarian Anders Visitisen, a member of the country’s right-wing Danish People’s Party, told Politico that U.S. foreign policymakers need “more adults in the room.”
“If these people can’t see how absurd they appear, they are out of touch with reality.”
Vistisen made headlines in January when he responded to Trump’s ambitious plan with a direct message in front of Strasbourg’s European Parliament that earned him swift admonishment and threats of a fine from the political body.
“Let me put it in words you might understand,” he said. “Mr. Trump, f–k off!”
In late January, a poll commissioned by Danish newspaper Berlingske and Greenlandic daily Sermitsiaq found that 85 per cent of Greenlanders reject the notion of joining the U.S.
A mere six per cent favoured the idea.
Carter’s bill isn’t the first propping up Trump’s mission.
On Jan. 13, a week before he’d officially taken office, Tennessee Republican Rep. Andrew Ogles and 12 co-sponsors from Red states put forth the “Make Greenland Great Again Act.” Four more representatives have since added their names, all Republicans.
As reported by Axios, several also sponsored separate bills giving Trump authority to negotiate for the rights to the Panama Canal and change the Gulf of Mexico’s name within the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), a move that’s already occurred.
Ogles’ bill also permits Trump to start working on a deal with the “Kingdom of Denmark.”
A joint statement from him and some of his co-sponsors reiterates the need to acquire Greenland for “national security and economic interests” and blames Joe Biden for taking a “blowtorch” to the U.S. reputation during his administration.
Ohio Congressman Michael Rulli likened it to the Louisiana Purchase and the $7.2 million acquisition of Alaska from Russia in 1867.
“The acquisition of Greenland represents a bold and essential expansion of American interests, one that would restore national pride and optimism to a country demoralized by the disastrous policies of the past four years under the Biden Administration,” he stated.
“President Trump’s vision for Greenland is exactly what is needed to reignite the spirit of Manifest Destiny that once propelled Americans to greatness. A historic presidency deserves a historic beginning. Let’s Make Greenland Great Again!”
Manifest Destiny is the doctrine that former President James Polk used to justify the expansion of the continental U.S. beyond the original 26 states in the early 1800s.
The latest bill lands just after a satirical campaign was launched to make California part of Denmark by crowdfunding $1 trillion to buy the state from Trump and the U.S.
As of Wednesday afternoon, support for the “Tremendous Plan” at denmarkification.com — likely a play on Californication — had garnered close to 225,000 signatures.
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