WASHINGTON (OSV News) — President Donald Trump ruled out the use of force to acquire Greenland during a speech in Switzerland Jan. 21, and backed down on a threat to issue tariffs on imported goods from nations that opposed U.S. acquisition of the island, citing a “framework” for a future deal for an increased role for U.S. involvement in the both security for the island and the broader Arctic region.
In Washington the same week, the Supreme Court appeared skeptical of the president’s efforts to oust Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve board, an independent agency, and Vice President JD Vance addressed the March for Life rally amid concerns from some pro-life groups about the Trump administration’s commitment to the Hyde Amendment.
Trump backs down on Greenland acquisition
The president ruled out the use of force to acquire Greenland in a Jan. 21 speech to the World Economic Forum, walking back some of his rhetoric about acquiring the island.
Trump and members of his administration recently stated they would seek to acquire Greenland for national security reasons, while previously refusing to rule out the use of military force to take the Arctic island. The semiautonomous territory is part of the Kingdom of Denmark, a NATO ally, and the comments raised alarm in Europe’s capitals and among Catholic Church leaders in the U.S.
“We never ask for anything, and we never got anything. 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, OK. Now everyone’s saying, ‘Oh, good.’ …. But I don’t have to use force. I don’t want to use force. I won’t use force,” Trump said in the speech to world leaders, CEOs and investors gathered in Davos, Switzerland.
Trump had also previously threatened to issue tariffs — a tax imposed by a government on imported goods — to allied nations in Europe that opposed the U.S. acquiring Greenland.
But Trump also walked back his tariff threat later the same day, citing “a very productive meeting that I have had with the Secretary General of NATO, Mark Rutte,” in a post on his social media website Truth Social.
“We have formed the framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland and, in fact, the entire Arctic Region,” Trump said. “This solution, if consummated, will be a great one for the United States of America, and all NATO Nations. Based upon this understanding, I will not be imposing the Tariffs that were scheduled to go into effect on February 1st.”
Prior to Trump’s speech, in a joint statement Jan. 19, Cardinals Blase J. Cupich of Chicago, Robert W. McElroy of Washington and Joseph W. Tobin of Newark, New Jersey, called for a “genuinely moral foreign policy for our nation,” and said the U.S. faces “the most profound and searing debate about the moral foundation for America’s actions in the world since the end of the Cold War.”
“The events in Venezuela, Ukraine and Greenland have raised basic questions about the use of military force and the meaning of peace,” they said.
Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services said in a Jan. 18 radio interview on the BBC’s “Sunday” program that he was concerned the U.S. military personnel under his pastoral care could be “put in a situation where they’re being ordered to do something which is morally questionable.”
Archbishop Broglio said U.S. soldiers could in good conscience disobey orders to participate in an invasion of Greenland.
Supreme Court appears skeptical of Trump’s attempt to fire a Fed governor
Trump sought to fire Cook, a member of the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors, alleging she committed mortgage fraud. Cook has both denied the allegations and offered evidence to rebut them, and she has never been charged with a crime.
Trump previously argued the Department of Justice’s inquiry into whether Cook lied on mortgage applications about her primary residence was “sufficient cause” to remove her.
Critics said the move threatened the longstanding independence of the central bank, pointing to an investigation by Trump’s Justice Department of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
Justices across the court’s ideological spectrum expressed skepticism about the president’s ability to remove her unilaterally.
At one point during oral arguments, Justice Brett Kavanaugh said empowering the president to dismiss Fed officials “at will” could “weaken, if not shatter, the independence of the Federal Reserve.”
The Supreme Court’s ruling may not settle the matter, as it may call for additional proceedings in lower courts. However, if the court allows Cook to remain in her role during such proceedings, it would in effect pause Trump’s attempt to remove her.
Vance addresses March for Life rally
Vance told participants at the 53rd annual March for Life in Washington Jan. 23 that Trump is their “ally” in the White House, amid concerns from some in the pro-life movement about remaining policy priorities just over a year into the president’s second term in the White House.
In his comments in person at the rally to marchers, Vance acknowledged “the elephant in the room,” which he called “a fear” that “not enough progress has been made, not enough has happened in the political arena, that that we’re not going fast enough, that our politics have failed to answer the clarion call to life that this charge represents, and that all of us, I believe, hold in our hearts.”
“I want you to know that I hear you, and that I understand there will inevitably be debates within this movement,” Vance continued. “We love each other, and we’re going to have open conversations about how best we use our political system to advance life, how prudential we must be in the cause of advancing human life. I think these are good, honest and natural debates, and frankly, they’re not just good for all of you. They help keep people like me honest, and that’s an important thing.”
The comments from Vance, and from Trump, who addressed the rally by video message, came as some pro-life leaders criticized Trump’s recent comments to House Republicans telling them to be “flexible” on the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits public funding of elective abortions, in negotiations on health care subsidies — to the disappointment of pro-life groups that have long supported that policy.
Pro-life leaders have also objected to a September decision by the Food and Drug Administration, which operates under the Department of Health and Human Services, to approve Evita Solutions’ generic version of mifepristone, a pill commonly but not exclusively used for early abortion. The drug’s approval came despite previous indications from FDA and HHS officials that mifepristone would undergo a safety review. On its website, Evita Solutions calls mifepristone “an effective, safe way to terminate early pregnancy.” It was also the second time a Trump administration approved a generic pill for abortion, which it did in 2019.
But Vance told the crowd, “You have an ally in the White House.”
Trump told participants in a prerecorded video message from the White House, “I want to thank every single one of you who’s out on this winter day, a beautiful day, but it’s winter, nevertheless, to stand up for the unborn,” Trump said.
Kate Scanlon is a national reporter for OSV News covering Washington. Follow her on X @kgscanlon.
