(CNN) — President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday intensified his push for American expansionism, refusing to rule out using military force to add Greenland to the United States and retake control of the Panama Canal.
In a wide-ranging news conference at Mar-a-Lago — his second since winning the 2024 election — he also said he could use “economic force” to turn Canada into the United States’ 51st state.
“You get rid of that artificially drawn line and you take a look at what that looks like — and it would also be much better for national security,” Trump said at his Florida estate.
The imperialistic land grabs Trump is floating — which, if he follows through and succeeds, would represent the first major changes to the American map since Hawaii’s statehood in 1959 — are a dramatic break from the foreign policy approaches of presidents in both parties in recent decades. And they come as Western leaders have opposed Russia’s attempts at expansion into formerly Soviet territory, including its war in Ukraine.
During his hour long remarks, Trump also stewed over a series of grievances — including the legal cases brought against him, the Biden administration’s handling of the transition and energy efficiency and environmental regulations that he doesn’t like.
Trump said he’d issue “major pardons” over convictions in connection with the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol and threatened Hamas, saying it must release the hostages kidnapped in Israel during the October 7, 2023, attack.
“If those hostages aren’t back … by the time I get into office, all hell will break out in the Middle East — and it will not be good for Hamas and it will not be good, frankly, for anyone,” Trump said. “All hell will break out. I don’t have to say anymore, but that’s what it is.”
Military action on Panama, Greenland
As he continues to push for American territorial expansion, Trump would not rule out military action to take control of Panama and Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark.
Asked directly whether he would rule out using “military or economic coercion” to see through his goal of gaining those territories, the president-elect responded, “No.”
“No, I can’t assure you on either of those two, but I can say this: We need them for economic security,” he said.
Trump has frequently, in public appearances and social media posts in recent weeks, raised the prospect of adding both to the United States.
He said Denmark should give up its control of Greenland or it would also face steep tariffs. He also suggested the people of Greenland could vote for independence or to join the United States.
“I’m talking about protecting the free world,” Trump said.
He again criticized Panama’s management of the Panama Canal, which he said was “built for our military.”
The US-built canal was opened in 1914 and controlled by the United States until a 1977 agreement provided for its eventual handover to Panama. The canal was jointly operated by both countries until the Panamanian government retained full control after 1999.
Praise for Cannon’s decision amid familiar legal grievances
The president-elect praised the Tuesday decision by District Judge Aileen Cannon to block the public release of special counsel Jack Smith’s final report on his federal investigations into Trump.
“He was thrown off the case in disgrace. Why should he be allowed to write a fake report? It’ll only be a fake report. That’s great news,” Trump said about Smith when asked about the decision by a reporter at Mar-a-Lago.
Cannon previously dismissed Smith’s classified documents case against Trump, ruling that Smith’s appointment as special counsel violated the Constitution, which is what Trump appears to be referencing in his comments.
Her order Tuesday prevents Smith and the Justice Department from moving forward with releasing the report until the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals has time to review the emergency motion by Trump’s co-defendants to block the report’s release.
Trump again dismissed the cases against him as “fake,” railed against Smith and called him “deranged” while praising Cannon, whom he appointed during his first term, as a “brilliant judge with great courage.”
Criticizing Carter
As he lambasted Panama, Trump also criticized former President Jimmy Carter for that 1977 agreement, enacted while Carter was in office.
Trump plans to attend the funeral of Carter, who died late last month at age 100, this week. And though the president-elect has long criticized Carter’s time in office, he issued a gracious statement after the Georgia Democrat’s death.
Still, on Tuesday, Trump said Carter brokered a bad deal with Panama.
“The Panama Canal is a disgrace, what took place at the Panama Canal. Jimmy Carter gave it to them for $1, and they were supposed to treat us well. I thought it was a terrible thing to do,” Trump said.
‘Gulf of America’
Trump continued to levy threats of steep tariffs against North American neighbors Mexico and Canada if the countries don’t crack down on undocumented immigrants crossing their borders into the United States.
But in a new twist, he said he wants to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.
“We’re going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, which has a beautiful ring. That covers a lot of territory, the Gulf of America — what a beautiful name. And it’s appropriate,” Trump said.
In a sign of how quickly Republicans want to fall in line behind Trump, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene announced she will be introducing legislation to change the name moments after the president-elect said it in his news conference.
Blasting Biden over the transition
Trump continued his attacks on the Biden administration’s handling of the transition ahead of his return to the White House on January 20.
Trump said the Biden administration is “trying everything they can to make it more difficult” and is seeking to “block the reforms of the American people and that they voted for.”
Trump pointed to Biden signing an executive action on Monday that will ban future offshore oil and gas development in parts of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, which was done in a way that makes it difficult for Trump to undo.
“They say we’re going to have a smooth transition. All they do is talk. It’s all talk. Everything they do is talk, ‘we’re going to have a smooth transition.’ And then they take 625 million acres, and they essentially landmark it, so you can’t ever drill there again. Well, we’re going to be drilling soon,” he said.
His attacks on the Biden administration’s role in the transition come after he posted on social media accusing Biden of making the transition “as difficult as possible.”
Raging against windmills, dripping showers and electric heaters
Perhaps Trump’s most consistent political position, since his first run for office, is his vehement opposition to windmills.
His latest comments came as part of extended criticism of environmental and energy efficiency — complaining about dripping showers, low-water dishwashers and electric heaters. (He railed against the water in toilets during his first term, saying in 2019, “People are flushing toilets 10 times, 15 times, as opposed to once.”)
On Tuesday, he blamed windmills for a sharp increase in whale fatalities across southern New England’s coastlines in recent weeks. “The windmills are driving the whales crazy, obviously,” Trump said.
He said windmills “litter our country” and compared them to “dropping garbage in a field.” He said they are “the most expensive energy ever,” and that only those who build them with subsidies want them.
“We’re going to try and have a policy where no windmills are being built,” Trump said.
Touting Emirati’s investment
Trump opened his news conference by announcing that Emirati billionaire Hussain Sajwani will invest at least $20 billion for data centers across the United States.
Trump credited his own victory for the investment, saying Sajwani “was very inspired by the election and wouldn’t do it without the election.”
Trump has previously vowed to expedite the permitting process for construction projects that invest at least $1 billion in the US.
Sajwani owns DAMAC Properties, a property-development company based in Dubai. Sajwani, dubbed “The Donald of Dubai,” was one of the few international business investors who upheld a strong relationship with Trump in the immediate aftermath of the US Capitol attack on January 6, 2021.
CNN’s Michael Williams, Kate Sullivan, Aaron Pellish and Steve Contorno contributed to this report.
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