David E. Sanger

And I had been told by people who had had conversations with him or with his advisors that he was increasingly discussing using the other powers of the United States to force Denmark— and now Panama, to basically make this deal happen. In other words, that he would come to it not just as a real estate developer, but a real estate developer with the world's most powerful, yes, military behind him.

And I had been told by people who had had conversations with him or with his advisors that he was increasingly discussing using the other powers of the United States to force Denmark— and now Panama, to basically make this deal happen. In other words, that he would come to it not just as a real estate developer, but a real estate developer with the world's most powerful, yes, military behind him.

And so that's why I phrased the question as I did, which was to ask him, are you planning to use military or economic coercion? And as you might expect with Donald Trump, who frequently tells you, as Maggie knows better than I do, sort of what's right on his mind, he immediately said, I'm not going to rule out using any of those tools. And that's what made such news.

And so that's why I phrased the question as I did, which was to ask him, are you planning to use military or economic coercion? And as you might expect with Donald Trump, who frequently tells you, as Maggie knows better than I do, sort of what's right on his mind, he immediately said, I'm not going to rule out using any of those tools. And that's what made such news.

Yes. America went through a phase where from the Louisiana Purchase to Alaska, which was dismissed as, you know, Seward's Folly at the time, right, to the Spanish-American War, from which we got Guam and Puerto Rico and had control of the Philippines for a long time. This was the way the U.S. operated.

Yes. America went through a phase where from the Louisiana Purchase to Alaska, which was dismissed as, you know, Seward's Folly at the time, right, to the Spanish-American War, from which we got Guam and Puerto Rico and had control of the Philippines for a long time. This was the way the U.S. operated.

In the post-World War II era, we have talked instead about living in a rule of international law where power took a backseat to what our legal rights were. And our fundamental argument as a nation

In the post-World War II era, we have talked instead about living in a rule of international law where power took a backseat to what our legal rights were. And our fundamental argument as a nation

about why the United States is supporting Ukraine is that Vladimir Putin used the fact that he had a more powerful army to go in on a national security argument, you could call it a pretense, to invade Ukraine. And we have moved beyond that. That was the core of the Biden argument for why this was an illegal move.

about why the United States is supporting Ukraine is that Vladimir Putin used the fact that he had a more powerful army to go in on a national security argument, you could call it a pretense, to invade Ukraine. And we have moved beyond that. That was the core of the Biden argument for why this was an illegal move.

So any suggestion that the United States was moving back to sort of the law of the jungle, is what's got people so, I think, disturbed at this moment.

So any suggestion that the United States was moving back to sort of the law of the jungle, is what's got people so, I think, disturbed at this moment.

Two things. First, on the executive orders, we've still got a couple that are coming and some that will put, I think, President-elect Trump in something of an interesting bind or at least some interesting choices. There is an order coming on artificial intelligence that would basically restrict to manufacturing in the United States and keeping in the United States manufacturing.

Two things. First, on the executive orders, we've still got a couple that are coming and some that will put, I think, President-elect Trump in something of an interesting bind or at least some interesting choices. There is an order coming on artificial intelligence that would basically restrict to manufacturing in the United States and keeping in the United States manufacturing.

The data centers, many of the chips that are used for AI purposes so that China can't use them for military purposes. It's a very nationalistic kind of order. It follows what Biden has been doing with the semiconductor industry since the start. And it would make President Trump, once he's in office, have to choose between his chips.

The data centers, many of the chips that are used for AI purposes so that China can't use them for military purposes. It's a very nationalistic kind of order. It follows what Biden has been doing with the semiconductor industry since the start. And it would make President Trump, once he's in office, have to choose between his chips.

tech supporters, including the Elon Musk crowd, who want the greatest ability to conduct AI work all around the world. Fascinating. And the MAGA group that would say, let's do this here in the United States. And I think he might stick with that one.

tech supporters, including the Elon Musk crowd, who want the greatest ability to conduct AI work all around the world. Fascinating. And the MAGA group that would say, let's do this here in the United States. And I think he might stick with that one.

That's right. And between these emerging groups, the tech supporters versus the older line sort of nationalistic MAGA supporters. On your broader question, you know, what's been remarkable, I think, to all of us has been the degree to which President Biden has seeded the spotlight. We've now seen Trump do two major press conferences.

That's right. And between these emerging groups, the tech supporters versus the older line sort of nationalistic MAGA supporters. On your broader question, you know, what's been remarkable, I think, to all of us has been the degree to which President Biden has seeded the spotlight. We've now seen Trump do two major press conferences.