Donald Trump’s tough talk: buy Greenland! The Panama Canal is back!: It provokes the defiance of many Republican rebels

Donald Trump says it is an “absolute necessity” for our country to own Greenland.

says the The US should take return the Panama Canal unless the “ridiculous” shipping rates are reduced.

He threatened it any republican whoever opposed him on the bill to prevent a government shutdown can and should be prime.

The president-elect is earning a reputation as a disruptor, with enough influence over what is now his party to blow up carefully negotiated bipartisan compromises. Let’s look at each of these.

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Trump tried in his first term to buy Greenland, which is controlled by Denmark but under the local regime. This went nowhere, though it created a diplomatic crisis with Danish officials.

While the United States built the Panama Canal in the early 20th century, it was handed over to Panama under a treaty approved by both countries. The President of Panama, José Raúl Mulino, says that “every square meter of the Panama Canal and its adjacent area belongs to Panama and will remain so. The sovereignty and independence of our country are not negotiable.”

That didn’t stop Trump from posting an AI image of an American flag flying over a waterway purported to be the canal.

The incoming president has certainly demonstrated the ability to engineer primary challenges to those who believe in him. But three dozen conservative Republicans voted against him on the government shutdown bill, included in the final passage, which scaled back his demand to eliminate the debt ceiling during his tenure. Would he really start primaries against everyone?

So the overwhelming likelihood is that the status of Greenland, the Panama Canal and the rebel Republicans will not change in the second term.

The reason Trump does this is that it reinforces his role as a disruptor, someone who takes on the decrepit establishment in Washington, even though a president, by definition, is the new establishment.

Beyond that, whether he’s making outrageous demands or not, Trump shapes, and often dominates, the news agenda. As the 47th president has acknowledged to me, he sometimes crosses the line because he knows it will cause a strong media backlash. As Trump sees it, even negative coverage it’s good coverage because the press plays on their turf.

And sometimes it’s just bargaining positions to win concessions, like with the threat of 25 percent tariffs against Canada and Mexico.

Remember that most people outside the media and political complex do not follow these developments with bated breath. Since the government didn’t actually shut down, they don’t see it as a setback for Trump that he didn’t get most of what he wanted. They probably don’t remember that he tried to buy Greenland before.

What Trump clearly has the power to do is blow up carefully crafted bipartisan agreements. He did so after Speaker Mike Johnson, whose future is in doubt because, like Kevin McCarthy before him, he didn’t have the votes, let the bill turn into a Christmas tree monstrosity.

And he did it during the campaign when both sides agreed to a tough deal on border enforcement, which was later scrapped over Trump’s objections.

But there are clear limits to Trump’s ability to shape events, especially with the country. That three dozen Republicans are challenging him on an issue as fundamental as the debt ceiling shows he can only push his party so far.

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Rep. Nancy Mace, a Trump supporter who voted against him in the final passage, told me on Sunday’s Media Buzz that it was because she wants to keep the debt ceiling.

But with the GOP clinging to a 1-vote margin in the House for now, the cauldron of campaign rhetoric is facing the cold, hard math of getting to 218.

Democrats have to ask themselves if it’s worth negotiating with the other side if they’re just creating a target for Trump’s demolition derby.

It was Elon Musk first tweeted about how bad the original bill was, at Trump’s suggestion, and after more than 70 tweets (including some untruths), the new president got into the fray.

Over the weekend, Trump denied that he had ceded his presidential powers to his billionaire friend, half-jokingly saying that Musk could never be president:

“You know why? He wasn’t born in this country. Hahaha.”

One of the media’s favorite parlor games is whether the two strong-willed men will eventually have a fight.

For now, though, Trump’s tough talk on Greenland and the Panama Canal shows he’s more comfortable playing the offensive, even if he doesn’t get anything out of it.

In other news:

–House Ethics report says Matt Gaetz “regularly” paid women for sex, including with an underage girl, and used illegal drugs.

In 2017, the former attorney general candidate “engaged in sexual activity with a 17-year-old girl,” for which he was also paid.

Gaetz used or possessed illegal drugs such as cocaine and ecstasy “on multiple occasions” and also accepted lucrative gifts, including transportation and lodging in the Bahamas.

“Many of the women interviewed by the committee were clear that there was a general expectation of sex,” with one woman telling the committee that Gaetz paid her more than $5,000 and that sex was involved “99 percent of the time.” times”.

The group said Gaetz was uncooperative and “attempted to obstruct and obstruct the committee’s investigation of his conduct.” The Justice Department investigated but did not file charges.

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Gaetz also misused House resources when he had his chief of staff “help a woman with whom he engaged in sexual activity obtain a passport by falsely indicating to the US State Department that she was a constituent. ..

“There was substantial evidence that Representative Gaetz violated House rules, state and federal laws and other standards of conduct that prohibit prostitution, statutory rape, the use of illicit drugs, the acceptance of impermissible gifts , the granting of special favors and privileges, and the obstruction of Congress.”

If Gaetz was still in the running for AG, this would have blown him out of the water.

Gaetz says, “I was charged with nothing – FULLY EXCUSED. Not even a campaign finance violation. And the people investigating me hated me. Then the same ‘witnesses’ that the DOJ found not credible were gathered by House Ethics to repeat their claims absent any questioning or challenge from me or my lawyers. I have never been sued.” he says he even sent money with women he wasn’t dating.

–A dogged Dallas Express reporter found out what happened to Texas Rep. Kay Granger, who “disappeared” months ago. He found her, and got confirmation from the registry, in a nursing facility that specializes in dementia and other memory problems. He made a statement about health challenges that completely missed the point: how could he not tell his constituents? Why did he insist on hiding it? There would have been enormous sympathy for her. Instead, the deputy kept everything a secret.

–Actress Blake Lively was the target of an online smear campaign, as exposed in texts and emails brazenly discussing planting stories to ruin her reputation, while warning that this must remain secret because they can’t very well admit they’re trying. to “bury” her. “You know we can bury anyone.”

Lively obtained these documents through legal action against her co-star and director, Justin Baldoni, and reviewed by the New York Times. She alleges sexual harassment, saying Baldoni and others routinely came into her trailer unannounced when she was topless, such as removing make-up from her body or giving her breasts.

Studio Wayfarer said the company and its PR people “did nothing proactive or retaliatory” against the actress, accusing it of “another desperate attempt to ‘fix’ her negative reputation.”

Lively says Baldoni tried to add unnecessary sex scenes, had improvised unwanted kisses and discussed her sex life, including instances where she may not have obtained consent. Another team member showed him a video of his wife naked.

The sad thing is that this kind of thing happens all the time. This time we got the goods, with Lively being portrayed as difficult, deaf and a bully.

–The Daily Mail reported that Jeff Bezos will marry his fiancee Lauren Sanchez this weekend in a $600 million extravaganza in Aspen.

The founder of Amazon, who owns the Washington Post, says this is bullshit:

“This is all completely false, none of this is happening…

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“The old adage ‘don’t believe everything you read’ is even more true today than ever. Now lies can reach the whole world before the truth can get its pants on. So be careful, people, and don’t be gullible.”

Good for Jeff for taking a hit against a crap story.