I am genuinely curious about what the American people think about the fascist regime’s obsession with annexing Greenland, which is a possession of Denmark that is seeking independence. I wrote about this issue back on Day 52, after Greenland held its elections in which the previously minor Demokraatit Party achieved a major upset over the two established parties. The Demokraats are still in the process of negotiating a majority governing coalition, so the country has a bit of a power vacuum at the moment. It’s one of the reasons they were very unhappy to learn that Second Lady Usha Vance and National Security Adviser Michael Waltz had scheduled a trip. It just isn’t an opportune time to be rolling out the red carpet for distinguished and uninvited foreign guests, particularly from a country openly hostile to their continued existence.

The fascist regime’s plans have changed a bit however. Originally, the Second Lady announced her intention to attend a dog race, but that has been cancelled. And Waltz is no longer going at all now that he’s embroiled in a scandal over inviting a journalist onto a Signal chat about military strikes in Yemen. Instead, Vice-President J.D. Vance will accompany his wife, and they will visit the Pituffik Space Base, which is an American base.

It’s unclear if they will come to Nuuk, the capital, or skip it entirely, which is dividing opinion about whether the change in plans is an escalation or deescalation. Sending the vice-president seems more serious than sending the national security adviser, but if the Vances restrict themselves to visiting an American military facility, it could have little impact in Nuuk where the negotiations on forming a government are ongoing.

But there is certainly no deescalation from Donald Trump. While meeting with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Trump said of Greenland “That whole area is becoming very important and for a lot of reasons. The routes are, you know, very direct to Asia, to Russia, and you have ships all over the place, and we have to have protection. So, we’re going to have to make a deal on that.” Then, on Wednesday, during a Rumble interview with Vince Coglianese, Trump was very clear about Vance’s mission.

…Trump confirmed that JD Vance and his team are on a mission to let “them [Denmark] know that we need Greenland for international safety and security.”

“It’s an island that from a defensive posture, and even offensive posture, is something we need, especially with the world the way it is, and we’re going to have to have it.”

The President clarified that it is not his main concern whether or not Greenlanders choose to become Americans. He said, “I don’t know. I don’t think they’re un-eager, but I think that we have to do it, and we have to convince them.”

If it’s Vance’s job on this trip to convince Denmark and Greenlanders of the desirability of Greenland becoming part of the United States of America, I don’t think he can even attempt it by restricting his travels to the Pituffik Space Base. It’s true that his mere presence will send a message, but quiet intimidation isn’t going to change hearts and minds.

Even before the vice-president announced he would replace Waltz on the trip, Mette Frederiksen, the Danish prime minister, said of the visit “I have to say that it is unacceptable pressure being placed on Greenland and Denmark in this situation. And it is pressure that we will resist.”

The Danish leader also dismissed the idea of the trip being a private visit, saying: “You cannot make a private visit with official representatives from another country.”

Trump’s threats to acquire Greenland, she said, should be taken seriously. “President Trump is serious … He wants Greenland. Therefore, it cannot be seen independently of anything else,” she told Danmarks Radio (DR).

She said: “It is clearly not a visit that is about what Greenland needs or what Greenland wants from a visit. Therefore, no matter how we twist it, it is a completely unacceptable pressure on Greenland, the Greenlandic politicians and the Greenlandic population, but it is also on Denmark and thus the kingdom.”

This attitude was shared by the government in Nuuk.

Greenland’s prime minister, Múte Bourup Egede, has accused Washington of “foreign interference” in relation to the planned visit, amid political uncertainty in the territory as coalition talks continue less than a fortnight after a general election.

The US president responded by saying the delegation had been invited by “officials” on the Greenlandic side. “People from Greenland are asking us to go there,” he told reporters on Monday.

The Nuuk government, however, disputed that. “For the record, the Greenlandic government has not issued any invitations for visits, either official or private,” it said in a statement. “The current government is acting as an interim government pending the formation of a new coalition, and we have kindly requested all countries to respect this process.”

So, it’s unclear if Vance will respect these concerns to a degree by keeping clear of Nuuk and, if so, how that comports with the ostensible mission he’s been given by Trump.

Either way, he’s clearly unwelcome.

One of the more confusing aspects of this is that the Naleraq party, which placed second in the recent elections, has been tossed out of the negotiations for forming a government for two seemingly contradictory reasons. The first is that they seek a more rapid indendepence from Denmark than the other parties. But the second is that they are seen as too pro-American, or at least pro-Trump.

Kuno Fencker, a member of parliament for Naleraq, which came second to the Democrats in the election, said the party had been “thrown out” of coalition talks, in part because of the upcoming US visit.

“It has an effect because many of the members think that we, especially me, are selling the country to the US,” he said, adding that it was not in his authority to do so.

You’d think the most aggressively pro-independence party would also be the most protective of the nation’s sovereignty against Trump’s plans for annexation, but that is apparently not the case. Still, it’s notable that the planned visit has so far had the effect of undermining the most pro-annexation party. That’s doesn’t seem very convincing.

Is this what the American people voted for? I don’t really think so. But these things will continue until the fascist regime is defeated.