The incoming US president wants to rename the Gulf of Mexico, gain control of the Panama Canal and take over Greenland
US president-elect Donald Trump held a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida yesterday to discuss economic development and, in his words, making America great again. He spoke at length about his economic promises and said that America needs Greenland and the Panama Canal for economic security. Trump also claimed that he'd be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America - which has "a beautiful ring" to it, he said.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump Jr was in Greenland for a private visit to the Danish autonomous territory coveted by his father, a visit which comes weeks after Trump Sr suggested that Washington should annex the territory. Prof Scott Lucas, Professor of American Studies and International Politics at UCD, joined RTÉ Radio 1's Drivetime to discuss the fallout from the Trump media conference. (This piece includes excerpts from the conversation which have been edited for length and clarity - you can hear the discussion in full above beginning at 2.19)
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From RTÉ News, Trump Jr visits Greenland after father says he wants to take it over
What does Lucas make of all of it? "Really? We're talking about all the issues around the world, some very serious conflicts like Russia's invasion of Ukraine or the Israel attacks on Gaza, when we've got questions about climate change, we've got serious domestic issues in the United states, to talk about healthcare, to talk about housing, transport, this is what we're going to talk about?
"Trump doesn't speak as a president speaks, in terms of considering policies, in terms of assessing situations, and we need to give up the idea of treating him as a 'normal president'. "Trump speaks in terms of thought bubbles, that he thinks makes himself look good and it will grab headlines.
"Now, this certainly will grab headlines, and it's a complete thought bubble. Because of course the fact is, is that the Gulf of Mexico, although the waters close to the United states are American, the waters close to Mexico are Mexican, much of the Gulf of Mexico is an international waterway."
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From RTÉ News, Trump won't rule out force over Panama Canal and Greenland
Trump has also argued that Canada should be a US state. "He's trolling, of course, because Canada has got some some serious domestic issues right now. Justin Trudeau has just stepped down as prime minister. What Trump does - and this is where it does get serious - is he's trying to feed the division in Canada, he's trying to turn Canadians against each other. By saying 'I'm Donald Trump, I can impose tariffs on you'. He's trying the same bullying tactics on Panama over a situation that was resolved almost 50 years ago. And he's trying the same bullying tactics, for some bizarre reason, with Greenland."
"I'm trying to avoid saying the word unhinged, but he is working with hinges that are not those that you and I work with," Lucas says. "What it means is that there's going to be no coherent approach to the major issues that are facing America. There's going to be no coherent approach to legislation, there'll be no coherent approach to the issues that affect us in Ireland, like corporation tax, like tariffs. There's just going to be Donald Trump issuing commands and hoping that he can make US agencies implement them."
From Associated Press, Denmark's PM responds to Trump refusing to rule out taking control of Greenland
What about Trump's potential role in securing a ceasefire in Gaza? "Let's take that as a serious issue to test", says Lucas. "Because this is serious for those families that are still in agony, as you've got 100 hostages, some dead, some alive, and we're going on 15 months. What you would hope to do is, you would hope to get the United States involved in negotiations to get a ceasefire. But that would involve putting pressure on the Netanyahu government, as well as on Hamas, to stop the attacks. And at this point Netanyahu doesn't look like he wants to do that.
"What has Trump done to deal with this situation? He's done two things. One that came up with the press conference today is, oh, if they don't release these hostages, we're going rain hell on them. Well, hell has been rained on Gaza for 15 months, what does Donald Trump think he can do that hasn't been tried already? Is he honestly talking about bringing US forces into that conflict?
"Secondly, who is Donald Trump's envoy who's handling the ceasefire negotiations? Is it a diplomat? Is it someone who's skilled in affairs in the Middle East? It's a golfing buddy of his named Steve Witkoff. That's where we are in terms of trump's rhetoric versus the reality of what's happening with Israel and Gaza."
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The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
