FIRST ON FOX: President-elect Donald Trump’s House GOP allies are clearing the runway for him to make good on his vow to acquire Greenland.
Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., is leading a bill to authorize Trump to enter negotiations with Denmark over purchasing Greenland, a territory located in North America but with longstanding cultural and geopolitical ties to Europe.
The bill is titled the “Make Greenland Great Again Act,” according to a copy of its text obtained by Fox News Digital.
“Joe Biden took a blowtorch to our reputation these past four years, and before even taking office, President Trump is telling the world that America First is back. American economic and security interests will no longer take a backseat, and House Republicans are ready to help President Trump deliver for the American people,” Ogles told Fox News Digital.
It would allow the sitting president to enter into talks with Denmark just after noon on Jan. 20, when Trump is due to be sworn in.
“Not later than 5 calendar days after reaching an agreement with the Kingdom of Denmark relating to the acquisition of Greenland by the United States, the President shall transmit to the appropriate congressional committees the agreement, including all related materials and annexes,” the legislation said.
The Constitution gives Congress the power of the purse, meaning the executive branch cannot make any purchases for the federal government without getting the funds first appropriated by the House of Representatives and approved in the Senate.
Ogles’ bill is backed by 10 fellow House Republicans, including Reps. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., Diana Harshbarger, R-Tenn., Michael Rulli, R-Ohio, Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., Neal Dunn, R-Fla., Barry Moore, R-Ala., Randy Weber, R-Texas, and the new incoming House Science Committee Chairman, Brian Babin, R-Texas.
While he first floated the idea during his first term in the White House, recent weeks have seen Trump ramping up public comments about acquiring Greenland, as well as other entities like the Panama Canal.
Trump suggested last week that he would not rule out taking both by force. He told a reporter who asked if he would rule out using economic or military coercion, “No, I can’t assure you on either of those two.”
Meanwhile, the idea of buying Greenland has gained traction with Trump’s Republican allies, with supporters of the idea noting its strategic location near Russia – one of the U.S.’s top adversaries.
Ogles argued it was “essential to our national security.”
The president-elect’s son, Donald Trump Jr., was in Greenland last week for what was billed as a personal tourism visit.
Ogles’ introduction is the latest move by a House Republican to help Trump make good on his foreign policy goals.
Last week, Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., chairman of the pragmatist House GOP Main Street Caucus, introduced a bill to allow Trump to purchase the Panama Canal for a symbolic sum of $1.
That bill nabbed more than a dozen Republican co-sponsors.
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