For all the talk about the Monroe Doctrine, we really ought to discuss a different 19th century concept: Manifest Destiny.
For all of the recent White House talk about the Monroe Doctrine, a different 19th-century concept — Manifest Destiny — should be part of the same conversation.
Instead of eying US expansion to the Pacific, Team Trump apparently believes we’re destined to control the entire hemisphere.
— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2026-01-06T18:11:19.889Z
https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/stephen-miller-greenland-us-manifest-destiny
The Republican added that there was a “good possibility that we could do it without military force,” but he went on to say that he wasn’t going to “take anything off the table.”
Almost a year later, the administration continues to insist on its radical vision. The New York Times reported:
Stephen Miller, a top aide to President Trump, asserted on Monday that Greenland rightfully belonged to the United States and that the Trump administration could seize the semiautonomous Danish territory if it wanted.
‘Nobody’s going to fight the United States militarily over the future of Greenland,’ Mr. Miller told Jake Tapper, the CNN host, after being asked repeatedly whether he would rule out using military force.
According to CNN’s transcript, the full context of Miller’s quote was, “T
he United States should have Greenland as part of the United States. There’s no need to even think or talk about this in the context that you’re asking, of a military operation. Nobody’s going to fight the United States militarily over the future of Greenland.”.....
The day before Miller’s on-air comments, the president emphasized his belief that the U.S. needs to acquire Greenland “from a national security situation,” and the day after Miller’s appearance, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, the White House’s odd choice for a special envoy to Greenland, appeared on CNBC and refused to rule out the possibility of a U.S. takeover of the Arctic island.
QUICK: You're talking about doing business. Is this us just going to Greenland and doing deals with them, or is this us taking it over?
JEFF LANDRY: The president is one of those people that says everything is on the table
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 2026-01-06T14:28:57.480Z
......
For all of the recent White House talk about the Monroe Doctrine, it seems that a different 19th century concept — Manifest Destiny — deserves to be part of the same conversation.
But instead of advocating the expansion of the United States to the Pacific Ocean, Team Trump appears to be operating under the assumption that we’re destined to control the entire hemisphere.
Our longtime allies appear unimpressed. T
he U.S. faced a rare rebuke at an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Monday. A day later, major European allies warned the United States that they would “not stop defending” the values of sovereignty and territorial integrity, in direct response to the White House threats against Greenland.
If Team Trump’s goal was to further isolate the United States for no reason, it’s succeeding beautifully.
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