Sullivan can't say anything about Greenland
Sen. Dan Sullivan and spokeswoman Amanda Coyne were afraid to say anything to Alaskans Thursday about Trump’s dumb plan to take Greenland, attacking the island if necessary.
This speaks volumes about Sullivan’s lack of political courage.
But it’s in keeping with Sullivan’s biggest goal in the U.S. Senate—bowing down to Trump during an election year and pleasing the cult.
Asked about Trump’s Greenland gibberish by Liz Ruskin of Alaska Public Media, Sullivan’s office pointed to a Sullivan press release printed as a column in the Wall Street Journal on January 15, 2025
Alaska is better than Greenland, Sullivan said last year in one of the most pointless documents posted by the Wall Street Journal.
Ignoring Alaska’s news organizations is standard practice for Sullivan, who claims they are all “very far left” entities that can’t be trusted.
But once many other Republican senators spoke up about the folly of a Greenland invasion, Sullivan did manage to tell a reporter from The Hill that he agreed with the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen. Roger Wicker, that Greenland does not have to be attacked.
The U.S. is free to send more troops under a 1951 treaty, so no invasion is needed.
“We have a treaty with them. We have troops there. The treaty allows for the expansion of troops if we request it and they approve it. They’re an important national security ally,” Sullivan told The Hill Thursday..
“I’m in the Wicker camp,” Sullivan said. “There’s strategic value but it already exists in a treaty.”
Being in the Wicker camp allows Sullivan to duck the issue and avoid attacking Trump.
As a man who parades hither and yon as an expert on security and world affairs, Sullivan has to hide in the comfortable padding of Beltway babbling to avoid angering Trump.
On Friday, Trump again claimed he would take Greenland, “whether they like it or not.”
It is beyond Sullivan’s ability, but he really should be in the Murkowski camp, instead of waiting to see which way the Greenland winds blow.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski denounced Trump’s ranting about Greenland in a clear and convincing manner on the floor of the Senate. She didn’t hide behind the technical and bureaucratic details Sullivan is using for cover.
Trump called Murkowski personally and attacked her with profanity, Ruskin said in her weekly newsletter, quoting a Senate staff member. The call was apparently about Venezuela, but it could have been about Greenland.
Murkowski told the Senate that Trump’s obsession with taking Greenland is damaging our country, which is obvious to everyone outside Trump’s circle:
“There is a lot that we have to do here, but there is one thing that we should not be doing, one thing that we should not be spending our time doing, and that is an effort—any effort—that would seek to annex Greenland, whether it is taking it by force, taking it by coercion, taking it by pressure or threat, or, really, in fairness, any related method. It is not an issue that I would have ever expected to raise here on the floor of the Senate,” Murkowski said.
“It is also deeply unsettling if you live in Denmark, which administers defense and foreign policy for Greenland, as a mostly autonomous territory. So those who are not Greenlanders but who live in Denmark are justifiably disturbed and unsettled. It is deeply unsettling, if you understand the immense value of NATO—of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and how one cofounding member taking land from another shatters this crucial alliance forever. We have seen that in statements coming from our NATO allies.”
“Frankly, this should be unsettling for all of us because, bluntly, there is no need to treat longstanding allies with such a brutal lack of respect. And that is what I believe it is, a lack of respect. We are not talking to the people of Greenland. We are talking over them.”
“We are talking about them. But we are not talking to them. That is what you do with your friends. That is what you do with your allies. The people of Greenland are watching us, and the United States is not exactly winning them over by treating them like serfs in a feudal estate. The administration’s approach is not improving relationships. It is alienating Greenland. It is alienating Denmark. It is alienating many of our friends and allies in Europe. And it sets the worst possible example for Russia and China and others.”
“Again, we have got a lot ahead of us in 2026. Greenland—taking Greenland or buying Greenland—should not be on that list. It should not be an obsession at the highest levels of this administration. I urge—I urge—a reset in how we are conducting these discussions. Let’s be respectful of one another. Let’s have dialogue. Let’s have cooperation. Let’s have partnership. Let’s take a different tack to secure this relationship with Greenland, recognizing that they are an ally and not an asset and not appropriate for any—any—sort of forced annexation or action.”
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