Donald Trump: Bizarre press conference causes an international stir

Around the world in around 70 minutes: With a sensational press conference, the future US President Donald Trump caused an uproar with various statements about international politics.

On Tuesday, the Republican did not rule out using the US military to gain control of the Panama Canal or Greenland. Trump had already spoken to Panama at the end of December “full and unconditional return” of the Panama Canal threatened. He also reiterated his desire to take over autonomous Greenland from Denmark.

Trump demanded that NATO allies further increase their defense spending and estimated five percent of gross domestic product (GDP) as appropriate. During the election campaign, Trump threatened delinquent NATO contributors that he would not support them in the event of a Russian attack.

It will probably not be Trump’s last appearance of this kind before he returns to the White House. “We will do this again”he announced.

Looking ahead to his term in office, which will begin on January 20, the 78-year-old promised at his Mar-a-Lago estate: “I tell you that this will be the golden age of America.” The world will finally show respect for the USA again as soon as he moves back into the White House.

It was the second press conference of this kind since Trump’s election victory in November. The Republican last answered questions from the press at a similar appearance in December. The current US President Joe Biden largely avoided such press conferences and has hardly answered any questions from journalists in recent months.

Trump, on the other hand, enjoys appearing in front of the media – and answers more rather than fewer questions. As much as he regularly complains about the press, he also seeks to be close to them.

Trump is known for repeatedly making drastic announcements in long monologues or confused press conferences alongside all sorts of incoherent statements. This was already the case in his first term in office. During the election campaign, he sometimes spoke for two hours at events – although he often lost the thread or lied. At the same time, however, he made headlines with some statements.

On Trump’s threat to impose economic coercion on Canada – “economic violence”as Trump called it – to put pressure on the country to possibly even unite its northern neighbor with the USA, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has already reacted.

“The probability of Canada becoming part of the United States is less than that of a snowball in hell”wrote Trudeau, who announced his resignation on Monday. Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said: “Our economy is strong. Our people are strong. We will never back down on threats.”

Trump then published a graphic of a map on his online mouthpiece – it shows: the USA and Canada, filled with a US flag. He wrote about it: “Oh Canada!” – probably in reference to the country’s national anthem with the English title “Oh Canada”.

Also Trump’s announcement that the Gulf of Mexico in “Gulf of America” Wanting to rename was heard. According to media reports, Trump loyalist and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said in a podcast that she had instructed her staff to “to draw up a draft law immediately”. Accordingly, US federal authorities could be instructed to only use the name in the future “Gulf of America” too used. The chances of success for such a legal text are not particularly high, but such a requirement cannot be ruled out.

The name Gulf of Mexico for the gulf on the southern coast of the USA has been in use since the 16th century. The body of water borders not only on the US states of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida, but also on Mexico and Cuba. A proper renaming would therefore require diplomatic negotiations with these states, as well as significant adjustments in maps, international treaties and scientific documents.

Trump also spoke about domestic political issues in the press conference and did not rule out the possibility of pardoning supporters who took part in the violent storming of the US Capitol on January 6, 2021 and were therefore convicted.

“People who did bad things weren’t prosecuted, and people who didn’t even enter the building are now in prison”he complained. “So we’re going to look at the whole thing. But I will make big pardons, yes.”

The Republican also spoke in a lengthy speech about water conservation measures. “No water comes out of the shower. It drips, drips, drips. So what happens: You stand in the shower ten times as long”he said. Or: “You want very little water coming out of the washing machine. So when you wash your clothes, you have to wash them four times instead of once, thereby using more water.” Even new taps would not provide water.

It is unclear what exactly Trump was referring to – in principle, the statements were probably criticism of environmental protection regulations. Trump had already complained during his first term in office about low water pressure, for example in shower heads, and the underlying regulations.

Many states in the USA are suffering from water shortages. In the southwest of the USA, for example, the states of Arizona and Nevada regularly face cuts in water.