MAGA – Make America Go Away
Europe has a new moto. No, this is not satire. This is what’s really happening.
President Donald Trump has sent a letter to Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre that might go down as one of the most revealing diplomatic communications in modern American history. Not because it articulates a coherent foreign policy vision, but because it exposes the alarming logic driving the administration’s aggressive push to seize Greenland from Denmark.
In the letter, first reported by PBS NewsHour and confirmed by multiple news outlets on Monday, Trump directly ties his refusal to “think purely of Peace” to his failure to win the Nobel Peace Prize. The problem? Norway’s government doesn’t award the prize. An independent committee does. And Denmark, not Norway, controls Greenland.
The Letter That Launched a Thousand Questions
“Dear Jonas: Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace,” Trump wrote, according to copies obtained by Reuters, The New York Times, and CNN. “Although it will always be predominant, but can now think about what is good and proper for the United States of America.”
The letter continued with Trump questioning Denmark’s right to claim Greenland at all: “Denmark cannot protect that land from Russia or China, and why do they have a ‘right of ownership’ anyway? There are no written documents, it’s only that a boat landed there hundreds of years ago, but we had boats landing there, also.”
That claim is historically inaccurate. Denmark became the colonial power in Greenland in the early 18th century, roughly 50 years before the United States even existed as a sovereign nation. Greenland was incorporated into Denmark in 1953 and has maintained semi-autonomous status with its own elected parliament ever since.
Congressional Democrats Sound the Alarm
The letter’s release has triggered an immediate firestorm on Capitol Hill. Senator Andy Kim of New Jersey called the message “unhinged and embarrassing,” adding that “Trump is doing lasting damage to our global position, which will harm our ability to keep America safe, secure, and prosperous.”
Senator Brian Schatz of Hawaii was even more direct about what the letter reveals. “I don’t see how you can be a serious person and not find this extremely worrisome,” the Hawaii Democrat wrote on X. Schatz pointedly noted that Trump, now 79 years old, will turn 80 in June. “He is not stable at all and his reality is warped.”
Dr. Jonathan Reiner, a CNN medical analyst who served as cardiologist to former Vice President Dick Cheney, called for formal action. “This letter, and the fact that the president directed that it be distributed to other European countries, should trigger a bipartisan congressional inquiry into presidential fitness,” Reiner posted to X on Monday.
Norway’s Prime Minister Delivers a Diplomatic Reality Check
Støre’s response was measured but pointed. He confirmed receiving the message and gently reminded Trump of a basic civics lesson: “As regards the Nobel Peace Prize, I have clearly explained, including to president Trump what is well known, the prize is awarded by an independent Nobel Committee and not the Norwegian Government.”
The Norwegian Nobel Committee has operated independently since 1901. Its five members are appointed by the Norwegian Parliament but operate without government interference. The 2025 Peace Prize went to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado. Nominations for that prize closed before Trump even returned to office.
Støre also reaffirmed Norway’s position on Greenland: “Greenland is a part of the Kingdom of Denmark, and Norway fully supports the Kingdom of Denmark on this matter.”
European Unity Hardens Against American Pressure
The letter lands as Trump has announced 10% tariffs on eight European nations, including Norway, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, the Netherlands, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, effective February. His stated goal: force Europe to accept American control of Greenland.
The targeted nations have responded with unusual solidarity. In a joint statement Sunday, leaders from all eight countries warned that “tariff threats undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral.” They reaffirmed their support for Denmark while expressing willingness to “engage in a dialogue based on the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the tariff threat “completely wrong” and articulated a principle European leaders increasingly feel compelled to state explicitly: “Any decision about the future status of Greenland belongs to the people of Greenland and the people of Denmark alone.”
Denmark has pulled its officials from the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos this week. French President Emmanuel Macron has reportedly asked the EU to activate its “Anti-Coercion Instrument,” sometimes called the “trade bazooka,” which could block American access to EU markets or impose export controls.
What Greenland Actually Thinks
The roughly 60,000 people who actually live in Greenland have been remarkably clear about their position: they don’t want to become American. Protests erupted in Nuuk, the capital, with demonstrators gathering outside the U.S. consulate. Over the weekend, thousands of residents marched to oppose any takeover attempt.
Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen has been unequivocal. “Our country is not something that can be annexed or taken over because you feel like it,” he wrote on Facebook Monday. “This support is important in a situation where fundamental international principles are being challenged.”
White House spokesperson Anna Kelly offered the administration’s rationale: the president “believes Greenland is a strategically important location that is critical from the standpoint of national security” and is “confident Greenlanders would be better served if protected by the United States from modern threats in the Arctic region.”
The Cognitive Fitness Question Won’t Go Away
Trump has long weaponized age and mental acuity against political opponents, most notably against President Biden during the 2024 campaign. Now those same questions are being directed at him with increasing urgency.
At 79, Trump is the oldest president in American history. His recent claim that he “aced” cognitive tests because he drinks milk drew ridicule from medical professionals. The Montreal Cognitive Assessment he references is a basic screening tool for early dementia, not a comprehensive evaluation of presidential fitness.
The letter to Norway raises specific concerns that go beyond normal policy disagreements. Confusing which country controls a territory you claim to need for national security. Believing a foreign government controls an independent prize committee. Abandoning a commitment to peace because of a perceived personal slight. These aren’t differences of opinion. They suggest something more fundamental may be wrong.
Senator Mark Warner, the Democratic vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, called Trump’s claims about Russian and Chinese threats to Greenland “fictitious.” For almost 80 years, since NATO’s founding, Greenland’s protection has been a shared alliance responsibility, not something Denmark bears alone.
Where This Goes From Here
Democrats are pushing for a new war powers resolution specifically targeting any military action against Greenland. After two Republican senators flipped their votes on a similar resolution regarding Venezuela, Democratic confidence in GOP willingness to check the president has cratered.
“I believed that my Republican colleagues would say no deployment of troops to Venezuela, and yet we weren’t able to pass a war powers resolution,” Senator Chris Coons of Delaware said. He urged Republicans who see Trump’s Greenland ambitions as “the genuine risk that it is” to “speak up about it.”
European Commission officials are expected to provide updates following an emergency meeting of EU ambassadors. European Council President Antonio Costa has announced plans to convene an extraordinary summit in the coming days.
The transatlantic alliance, already strained by disputes over Ukraine, earlier tariff battles, defense spending, and migration policy, now faces its most fundamental test since NATO’s founding. The question isn’t just whether Trump will try to seize Greenland. It’s whether anyone in his own party will tell him why his reasoning for wanting it makes no sense at all.