Donald Trump in The Hill 2020s


On Foreign Policy: Buying Greenland is strategically interesting

Amid reported interest for buying Greenland, Trump said, "Denmark essentially owns it. We're very good allies with Denmark. We protect Denmark like we protect large portions of the world." Trump added, "Strategically, it's interesting, and we'd be interested, but we'll talk to them a little bit. It's not number one on the burner." Trump has reportedly mulled attempting to buy the largest island in the world that is home to more than 50,000 people from Denmark, though no official inquiries have been made yet.

Trump compared buying the territory from Denmark to a "large real estate deal." He said, "A lot of things could be done. It's hurting Denmark very badly because they're losing almost $700 million a year carrying it. So they carry it at a great loss. And strategically for the United States, it would be nice."

Greenland's foreign minister responded to the reports saying the territory is "open for business, but we're not for sale." The U.S. does currently have an airbase on the island.

Source: The Hill e-zine on 2020 presidential hopefuls Aug 18, 2019

On Government Reform: FactCheck: 128 judgeships open because Senate GOP forced it

Trump said, "President Obama [& Biden] left me 128 judges to fill. When you leave office, you don't leave any judges. Maybe he got complacent." Is that true that Trump could appoint so many judges because President Obama left the positions unfilled? We checked, and found that while it's true that Trump inherited 128 open judge positions, that was because the Senate blocked Obama's appointments.

Excerpts from The Hill e-zine, March 29, 2018: "Republicans took control of the Senate in 2014 during Obama's last two years in office and did not confirm many of his nominees. The Senate's top Republicans, led by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, teamed up to block Democratic efforts to push forward Obama's nominees, slowing down confirmations by the most in six decades. Most notably, McConnell refused to hold a confirmation hearing on Obama's nominee for Supreme Court justice, Merrick Garland. The vacancies left behind by the Obama administration were not by choice.

Source: The Hill e-zine Fact-Check on First 2020 Presidential Debate Sep 29, 2020

On Principles & Values: Questions Nikki Haley's eligibility for presidency

Former President Trump promoted a false conspiracy theory questioning 2024 rival Nikki Haley's eligibility to serve as president in a social media post. Trump reposted a report from the right-wing website The Gateway Pundit that suggested Haley was not a U.S. citizen because her parents, who immigrated from India, were not citizens at the time of her birth. But Haley was born in the U.S. in 1972, and as a result is a U.S. citizen who is eligible to run for president. Haley's campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

While Trump did not add any commentary to the post, it is not the first time he has tried to sow doubt about the legitimacy of a political opponent's right to serve in the White House. Trump rose to political prominence in part by pushing the false and racist claim that then-President Obama was not born in the U.S. During the 2016 GOP primary, he claimed Sen. Ted Cruz, one of his rivals at the time, was ineligible for the White House because he was born in Canada.

Source: The Hill analysis of 2024 pre-Iowa caucus Jul 19, 2022

On Principles & Values: Christians do not vote in large numbers; but vote for me

Fox News host Laura Ingraham repeatedly prodded President Trump over his comments at a conservative Christian summit, where he told attendees they won't have to vote anymore after November.

Some Democrats have suggested the former president was saying there would be no more elections if he won. Instead, Trump repeatedly argued his comments were because Christians do not vote in large numbers.

"That statement is very simple. I said, 'Vote for me; you're not going to have to do it ever again.' It's true, because we have to get the vote out. Christians are not known as a big voting group," Trump said. "This time, vote. I'll straighten out the country, you won't have to vote anymore. I won't need your vote. You can go back to not voting," he added.

"You meant you won't have to vote for you because you have four years in office. Is that what you meant?" Ingraham asked. Trump repeated his argument that Christians tend not to vote in large numbers.

Source: The Hill e-zine on 2024 Presidential hopefuls Jul 29, 2024

The above quotations are from The Hill e-magazine coverage and analysis of 2020s campaigns.
Click here for other excerpts from The Hill e-magazine coverage and analysis of 2020s campaigns.
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Page last updated: Aug 04, 2024