Donald Trump told the New York Times he regrets not using the national guard to seize voting machines after losing the 2020 election, while also questioning whether the troops would have been “sophisticated enough” to do so. The interview revisited reports that in December 2020 advisers including Sidney Powell and Michael Flynn discussed using military or federal authorities to take Dominion machines in swing states and reviewed draft executive orders describing such a seizure. The proposal was resisted by senior officials, including then attorney general William Barr, and was ultimately not carried out. Trump again falsely claimed the 2020 election was rigged despite experts calling it highly secure and courts rejecting his challenges, while not disputing the 2024 election he won.

Donald Trump has launched military actions and made territorial and resource-focused threats—from toppling Venezuela’s leader and seeking preferential access to its oil to floating the annexation of Greenland and warning of further strikes on Iran—alarming allies and rivals about a sharp U.S. turn away from the post–World War II rules-based order. Analysts say his approach revives a spheres-of-influence mindset akin to a revamped Monroe Doctrine, emphasizing force, tariffs, and unilateral leverage, especially in the Western Hemisphere despite “America First” promises to avoid new entanglements. European and Asian partners are weighing greater self-reliance while largely muting public criticism to avoid provoking Washington, even as some fear the precedent could encourage coercion by Russia...

Senior Trump administration official Thomas Dans said the U.S. could take meaningful steps toward acquiring Greenland within weeks or months, though he expects any final deal to take longer because it would require winning support from Greenlanders. Trump’s stated preference is to buy the minerals-rich island, but officials are also considering other diplomatic paths such as encouraging Greenland’s independence through direct payments and then pursuing a compact of free association, while a long-term lease has been discussed but downplayed by Trump. Denmark and Greenland insist the territory is not for sale, and polling suggests most Greenlanders favor eventual separation from Denmark but oppose becoming part of the United States. The issue is escalating at the highest levels with Vice Pre...

Chris Hayes examines Donald Trump’s escalating threats to seize Greenland, describing how Denmark and other European allies are now preparing militarily and diplomatically for the once-unthinkable possibility of a U.S. invasion. The episode argues there is no legitimate legal or national-security rationale for U.S. control given Greenland’s NATO ties and existing U.S. basing, framing Trump’s push instead as a real-estate-style fixation on “ownership,” resources, and even map optics that could destabilize NATO and post–World War II norms. Hayes also highlights Greenlanders’ clear rejection of U.S. annexation and polling showing Americans overwhelmingly oppose the effort, especially any use of military force.

The article argues that Donald Trump’s renewed push to acquire Greenland has escalated from talk of purchase to open suggestions that the United States could use military force against Denmark, a longtime ally, making it one of his most dangerous fixations. It notes Greenland’s genuine strategic importance to North Atlantic defense and the long history of U.S.-Danish security cooperation there, while warning that Trump’s hostility toward alliances like NATO raises the risk of a crisis. With Denmark and Greenland rejecting any transfer of sovereignty and most Americans opposed, the author says the drive is largely personal and could lead Trump to attempt a unilateral claim and then direct the U.S. military to act as if Greenland were U.S. territory. Such steps, the piece contends, could fra...

Talks in Washington between US officials and the foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland ended without resolving what Denmark called a fundamental disagreement, as Donald Trump continues to press for a US takeover of Greenland on national security grounds. Danish foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said the US position did not change and urged respectful cooperation, while the parties agreed to form a working group to address American security concerns within Denmark’s stated red lines. Denmark announced plans for a more permanent military presence in Greenland, and France, Germany, and Norway signaled support by offering troops for a Denmark-led multinational force. European leaders reiterated Greenland’s right to self-determination, Greenland’s leaders rejected US ownership, and a n...

The episode examines Donald Trump’s repeated “jokes” about canceling elections, arguing that even if the specific remark is facetious it reflects a deeper contempt for democratic constraints and a pattern of testing how far supporters and institutions will go. JVL and Andrew Egger place the comment in a wider context of alleged authoritarian behavior and norm-breaking, from election subversion and executive power grabs to using crises and foreign-policy disputes as pretexts to erode oversight and accountability. They also discuss how irony and trolling culture on the right—now reflected in government messaging they describe as flirting with extremist and neo-Nazi references—creates a permission structure where initially “just kidding” statements become normalized and later defended when tu...

Several NATO countries, including Germany, Sweden, France and Norway, are sending small military contingents to Greenland for joint exercises with Denmark as President Donald Trump escalates threats to take the island by force. While Arctic training deployments are not unusual, the timing is meant as a political signal of solidarity with Denmark and Greenland amid a crisis triggered by the prospect of one NATO member targeting another’s territory. Denmark is expanding its own presence and says a hypothetical attack would devastate NATO, even as Trump argues US control of Greenland would strengthen the alliance. Talks in Nuuk between Danish and Greenlandic officials and US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio produced no breakthrough, but the sides agreed to form a wor...

Minneapolis has become a flashpoint after an ICE agent’s killing of Renee Good and a surge of federal immigration enforcement that has sparked violent clashes, viral videos, and widening national scrutiny. The article argues the Trump administration is using aggressive, militarized tactics and inflammatory rhetoric, including threats to invoke the Insurrection Act, in ways that heighten tensions and raise constitutional and civil liberties concerns, even as federal officials blame local Democratic leaders for obstructing enforcement and fueling unrest. Minnesota leaders are urging peaceful protest and de-escalation, while the ACLU has sued over alleged abuses involving U.S. citizens. The piece contends Trump may be courting confrontation to project strength and justify expanded federal pow...

Trump’s renewed push to acquire Greenland is forcing Europe to choose between accommodating U.S. coercion to preserve NATO and Ukraine support, or resisting it even at the risk of rupture, and the article argues Europe must stand firm because an ally demanding territory is inherently unreliable. It contends that concessions would only encourage further extortion, while Trump’s ability to fully abandon Ukraine is constrained by U.S. domestic politics and the unpopularity of detonating NATO. The piece urges Europeans to coordinate messaging and outreach inside the United States to raise the political costs of anti-European moves, while accepting reasonable discussions like increased basing or resource access but rejecting any sovereignty transfer. It also calls for credible retaliatory optio...

The episode examines how cryptocurrency’s largely unregulated, speculative market exposes ordinary people to hacks, scams, bankruptcies, and massive losses, anchored by Brandon LaRocque’s account of losing his life savings in XRP and finding little recourse through law enforcement or existing consumer protections. Anne Applebaum and researcher Molly White then trace how the Trump administration and the Trump family’s crypto venture, World Liberty Financial, intertwine personal profit with policy, raising conflict-of-interest and corruption concerns through deregulation, dropped enforcement actions, and “pay-for-access” dynamics. The conversation also looks at crypto’s growing political power through heavy election spending, the risks of opaque funding and potential bribery, and proposals l...

As Trump weighs possible strikes on Iran and continues threatening action in places like Venezuela, Cuba, Mexico and Greenland, polling suggests Republicans have moved sharply toward supporting military intervention in line with his rhetoric. A Marist poll found majorities of Republicans backing “military action” in all five locations, while independents and Democrats largely opposed it, and other surveys show GOP support often rises further after strikes occur, including for stationing troops. Broader measures also indicate Republicans are increasingly rejecting a less active US global role and more readily endorse using military power, even as the public overall remains wary of new interventions and some Trump proposals draw skepticism. The shift is making it harder for Republican lawmak...

The episode unpacks Trump’s Truth Social ultimatum threatening escalating tariffs on European countries unless Denmark agrees to the “complete and total purchase” of Greenland, framing it as a major escalation from transactional rhetoric to overt coercion that could serve as a pretext for conflict. The hosts discuss how European and NATO troop deployments to Greenland—prompted in part by Trump’s own demands that allies defend the region—are being recast by Trump as hostile, likening the dynamic to gray-zone tactics associated with Putin and arguing it reflects a shift toward a “might makes right” foreign policy that undermines sovereignty and the rules-based order. They also argue a genuine purchase is practically impossible and credibility-free, explore scenarios ranging from Trump claimi...

Donald Trump tied his renewed push for U.S. control of Greenland to not receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, telling Norway’s prime minister he felt less bound to “think purely of Peace” and arguing Denmark cannot secure the island from Russia or China. He threatened escalating tariffs from Feb. 1 on several European countries, plus Britain and Norway, until the U.S. is allowed to buy Greenland, prompting the EU to prepare possible countermeasures and raising fears of a revived transatlantic trade war. European leaders said they would not be blackmailed and are weighing retaliatory tariffs and potentially the EU’s unused Anti-Coercion Instrument, while Britain urged calm and signaled it may not retaliate. The dispute has rattled markets and intensified concerns about strains on NATO and the du...

The hosts react to a reported Trump message threatening a coercive grab for Greenland, treating it as a “mob boss” approach to diplomacy and comparing its logic to Putin’s claims about Ukraine. They argue the episode signals a broader collapse of U.S. reliability and the American-led order, with Europe shifting from appeasing Trump to deterring him, accelerating decoupling from Washington, and potentially driving allies toward China while raising fears of NATO fracture and global nuclear proliferation. The discussion also probes whether any meaningful Republican or elite pushback is likely, and whether the damage to alliances and democratic norms can be reversed without extraordinary domestic action.

The episode covers escalating tensions after European NATO allies sent troops to Greenland, as President Trump threatened military action and steep tariffs while insisting the U.S. should have “complete and total control” of the territory. It highlights reporting that Trump told the UK prime minister he may have been given bad information about the deployments, alongside an extraordinary text exchange with Norway’s leader that European diplomats say is pushing the alliance to the brink and drawing comparisons to Putin. Guests discuss European officials’ exasperation at the U.S. becoming a destabilizing force within NATO and the economic and market anxiety this standoff is creating among global leaders and investors.

The article argues that since Trump’s 2025 inauguration the United States has effectively abdicated leadership of the post-1945 global order, prompting allies and rivals to recalibrate in ways that weaken U.S.-led institutions. It predicts intelligence ties like Five Eyes will wither, NATO will become nonfunctional as Europe rearms, and a new nuclear proliferation wave will spread to countries such as Germany, Poland, Canada, and Japan, while Europe moves closer to China and integrates Ukraine into its own security framework. The author contends this is not just a Trump phenomenon but reflects either broad public support or a failing constitutional system, making it an “America problem.” It highlights looming risks including a failed Treasury auction, erosion of the dollar’s reserve-curren...

Donald Trump threatened to impose 200% tariffs on French wine and champagne after reports that Emmanuel Macron is unlikely to join Trump’s UN-backed “Board of Peace” overseeing the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, dismissing Macron’s influence and suggesting trade penalties could force compliance. The board, endorsed by the UN Security Council, has also invited leaders including Vladimir Putin, Keir Starmer and Narendra Modi. Trump also reiterated his intent for the U.S. to control Greenland, arguing Europe would not resist and questioning Denmark’s historical claim despite Greenland’s self-government under Danish sovereignty. European countries are considering retaliatory tariffs and other economic measures in response to Trump’s Greenland-related threats, including potential U.S. tariffs and the ...

The article argues that the post-1945 U.S.-led international order, which restrained great-power conflict and supported open trade and cooperation, is being rapidly dismantled in Donald Trump’s return to office. It contends that Trump is accelerating a shift toward a more Hobbesian form of anarchy marked by unconstrained executive power, territorial threats, and impulsive, technology-enabled action that erodes both international norms and domestic checks. Rather than practicing a realist strategy of prudent self-help and alliance management amid U.S. overstretch and China’s rise, the administration is portrayed as picking risky fights with allies, neglecting core challenges such as Ukraine and China, and turning U.S. hegemony into revisionist, transactional coercion. The authors warn that ...

Jessica Tarlov and historian Heather Cox Richardson reflect on the first year of “Trump 2.0,” arguing that the bigger story than tariffs is an extra-constitutional shift toward authoritarianism that is straining U.S. institutions, empowering aggressive immigration enforcement, and signaling with increasingly explicit extremist imagery. They discuss how Trump’s chaos is reshaping the post–World War II global order by weakening alliances and pushing partners toward China, while also distracting from issues like Ukraine and stalled transparency around the Epstein files and related political accountability. The episode also explores why cultural nostalgia for 2016 resonates now, and how pro-democracy politics may need to reconnect everyday economic concerns with the stakes of democratic govern...