Trump’s forced takeover of Greenland? Moon landing hoax theories have more support
Even moon landing hoax theories have more public support than President Donald Trump’s plan to take over Greenland.
Vice President JD Vance and his wife are traveling to Greenland this week despite sharp backlash from residents and local officials. The trip—which has been scaled back amid the criticism—comes as Trump repeatedly vows to annex Greenland, which is controlled by Denmark.
CNN polling guru Harry Enten said earlier this week that he has “rarely” seen a policy idea so “unpopular.” He said that about 70 percent of Republicans believe the U.S. should not annex Greenland.
“This has got to be one of the most unpopular ideas I’ve ever heard. You know I look at the polling day in, day out. The percentage of Americans who are against this, we could throw up on the screen right now. We’re looking at about 70 percent of Americans who say, no, the U.S. should not take over Greenland,” he said on “Anderson Cooper 360.”
“That is more Americans who were for the impeachment and removal of Richard Nixon by the end of his presidency. This is uniformly unpopular. Even only half of Republicans support it,” he added.
He said while the idea is very unpopular in the United States, it is even more unpopular in Greenland. Just 6% of Greenlanders said that they want to be controlled by the U.S. Enten said more people believe the first moon landing was fake.
“To give you an idea of how low 6 percent is, if you took a poll of Americans and say, do you believe we actually landed on the moon? About 10 percent of Americans think we fake the moon landing. So fewer Greenlanders are for the U.S. taking over Greenland than Americans who actually believe that we did not land on the moon,” Enten said.
Trump, in an interview Wednesday on “The Vince Show,” repeated his desire for U.S. control of Greenland. Asked if the people there are “eager” to become U.S. citizens, Trump said he didn’t know “but I think we have to do it, and we have to convince them.”
The vice president’s decision to visit a U.S. military base in Greenland has removed the risk of violating potential diplomatic taboos by sending a delegation to another country without an official invitation. Yet Vance has also criticized long-standing European allies for relying on military support from the United States, openly antagonizing partners in ways that have generated concerns about the reliability of the U.S.
During his first term, Trump floated the idea of purchasing the world’s largest island, even as Denmark insisted it wasn’t for sale. The people of Greenland also have firmly rejected Trump’s plans.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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