NEWS
President-elect Donald Trump is so committed to acquiring Greenland and the Panama Canal that he’d be willing to use military coercion to get them. The remains of President Jimmy Carter lie in state at the U.S. Capitol. The Pacific Palisades wildfire rages as tens of thousands are forced to evacuate.
๐๐ผโโ๏ธ I’m Nicole Fallert, and welcome to the Daily Briefing.
Trump won’t rule out military force to acquire Greenland and the Panama Canal
President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday repeatedly declined to rule out involving the U.S. military to carry out his ambitions for the U.S. to acquire Greenland and the Panama Canal.
What we’re talking about: Since winning the 2024 election, Trump has openly discussed the U.S. acquiring Greenland, a mineral-rich territory controlled by Denmark, and the Panama Canal, which has been operated by Panama since 1999 following a deal orchestrated by the late President Jimmy Carter 22 years earlier.
- Why is Trump saying this? This is about Trump establishing American dominance abroad. Trump claims China is effectively operating the Panama Canal. Trump said the U.S. needs Greenland, which has a population of about 56,000 people, for “national security purposes.”
- Trump also publicly pondered the idea of Canada becoming the 51st U.S. state. Trump said he is not considering military force to annex Canada โ whose longtime prime minister, Justin Trudeau, resigned Monday โ but said he hopes the U.S. can acquire the neighboring country to the north through “economic force.”
- The Gulf of America? Trump also suggested on Tuesday that he plans to rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America โ and it was not immediately clear why.
USA TODAY exclusive: Biden’s belief and Trump’s compliment
President Joe Biden, both reflective and defensive as he discussed his legacy, told USA TODAY in an exclusive exit interview he believes he could have won his reelection bid โ but isn’t sure he would have had the vigor to complete four more years in the Oval Office. The outgoing president also told USA TODAY details about his private meeting with President-elect Donald Trump. In public, Trump has decried the state of the nation as “a disaster” and “a mess.” But at their private meeting, Trump praised him, Biden said. Read highlights from USA TODAY’s conversation with President Biden.
More news to know now
What’s the weather today? Check your local forecast here.
Pacific Palisades wildfire rages
A fast-moving wildfire fueled by dangerously high-speed Santa Ana winds continues to threaten homes in some of California’s most exclusive neighborhoods on Wednesday. The blaze destroyed homes and created traffic jams as 30,000 people evacuated beneath huge plumes of smoke ahead of warnings the worst conditions would come overnight. Follow live updates from USA TODAY and track the wildfire with this map.
The public mourns Jimmy Carter
Americans continue to pay respects on Wednesday at President Jimmy Carter’s flag-draped casket in the U.S. Capitol. Despite heavy snow fall earlier this week and bitter cold, a crowd winds its way into the Capitol building to honor the former president, who served only one term but forged an enduring legacy as a humanitarian. If you’d like to visit the site at the Capitol Rotunda: Carter is scheduled to lie in state from 7 a.m. Wednesday until 7 a.m. Thursday. Read more
Today’s talkers
The snow is good. Why is Park City, Utah, so quiet?
The Park City Mountain Resort is struggling to open terrain during a strike of ski patrollers. On Tuesday, the Utah resort’s website showed just 104 out of 350 trails were open, despite the mountain receiving four inches of fresh snow in the last 48 hours, and more than two feet in the last week. The mountain’s executives acknowledged that it’s unclear how much can remain open each day as the patrollers union and Vail Resorts, which owns the mountain, continue to struggle to come to terms for a new contract. Read more
Photo of the day: Meet Poppy
The Metro Richmond Zoo in Virginia announced the name of its very own baby pygmy hippopotamus on Monday: Poppy. The name was selected after a poll generated more than 116,000 votes across 165 countries.
Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at [email protected].
