The sky must have fallen. I never thought it could happen. But it did. I actually agreed with most of what liberal Robert Wise wrote in the NSS on January 30. He criticized Trump for his statements on taking over Greenland. Trump antagonized the Danes {owners of Greenland) and also NATO with his brash approach. If he had taken a softer approach, he would have gained friends instead of generating bad feelings. They would have been grateful to him and to the USA for setting up a "golden dome" defense for them (and also for us) at the northernmost extremity of their Greenland island.
On the positive side, Trump did highlight the need for a US presence in that region which could have fallen to the Chinese (who have had warships in the area) and Russian intruders. The previous administration did nothing to defend that region or at the very least point to out its vulnerability.
Robert Wise says that it is time for the courts and congress to "reign in this President to stop (his) extremism and madness." Has it ever occurred to Robert that Trump has a lot of issues and projects on his plate, many at the same time. Here are a few examples:
Biological males taking place in women's sports and sharing their locker rooms.
The increase in many European country's' defense spending from two to five % of GDP.
Attacks on fentanyl carrying boats in the Gulf. (That destructive drug claimed almost 73,000 US lives in 2023.)
The daring capture and abduction of Venezuela's evil leader.
The successful raid on Iran's underground nuclear production facility about half the way around the world from here.
Closing the southern border and upholding congressionally passed immigration laws.
Making a speech of over one hour at the recent National Prayer Breakfast without using a teleprompter--imagine Biden (or whoever was running the autopen) doing that, or how often Kamala would have resorted to word salads in the same time frame!
Combating organized fraud in cities such as Minneapolis and also fire torn housing in LA which remained unbuilt for almost a year after charities assisted their financing.
Fighting antisemitism in several liberal college campuses.
Bringing down the price of gasoline, groceries, and other commodities.
Installing tariffs on unfair country practices to level the playing field in international trade, resulting in many new plants being scheduled for building in the USA, and the Dow Industrial stock average soaring to over 50,000 for the first time in history.
Not to make an excuse for this Greenland missteps, but it is easy to see how Trump's schedule might have been rather crowded at times, especially when many of these projects were running concurrently.
Peter Gilderson, Madison.
