Trump cautions ‘bad things’ in store if Iran won’t negotiate as Islamic Republic touts ‘Missile City’
President Donald Trump promised that ‘bad things’ would happen to Iran if the regime does not come to the table for nuclear negotiations. “My big preference is that we work it out with Iran, but if we don’t work it out, bad things are gonna happen to Iran,” the president said Friday. Iran is enriching uranium to 60%, just shy of the 90% weapons-grade. Experts say it could have a nuclear weapon within weeks if it were to take the final steps to building one. In response to U.S. sanctions threats, Iran showed off a sprawling underground tunnel system replete with missiles, launchers, engines and other advanced weapons. WALTZ TELLS IRAN TO GIVE UP NUCLEAR PROGRAM OR ‘THERE WILL BE CONSEQUENCES’ A video released this week by state media shows two Iranian military leaders, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces Major General Mohammad Hossein Bagheri and IRGC Aerospace Force Commander Amir Ali Hajizadeh, riding in a vehicle through long, weapons-packed tunnels that Tehran has dubbed “Missile City.” The 85-second clip, which has not been independently verified, is set to menacing music and suggests that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps stands ready to respond to threats of an attack from the U.S. and Israel. “Iran’s ballistic missile force remains the largest in the Middle East,” said Behnam Taleblu, fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. “This is all part of the regime’s deterrent strategy to cement the idea of any conflict with Tehran being a costly and protracted one.” The move comes as U.S. is bolstering its forces in the Middle East. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth recently sent a second aircraft carrier, the U.S. Navy’s USS Carl Vinson, to join the USS Harry S. Truman‘s carrier strike group, whose deployment was also extended. The U.S. also recently deployed two B-2 stealth bombers to the Diego Garcia base in the Indian Ocean, a warning to Iran and Yemen’s Houthi militia. The planes are capable of carrying 30,000-pound “bunker buster” bombs and are now situated within range of Iran. Weeks ago, Trump wrote a letter to Iran urging the regime to engage in talks on its nuclear program. Kamal Kharazi, the top foreign policy adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said on Thursday that the regime would engage in “indirect” talks, according to local news reports. IRAN’S LEADER WARNS US COULD RECEIVE ‘SEVERE SLAPS’ FOLLOWING TRUMP’S THREATS TO HOUTHIS “The Islamic Republic has not closed all the doors and is willing to begin indirect negotiations with the United States.” “Our policy is to not negotiate directly while there is maximum pressure policy and threats of military strikes,” foreign minister Abbas Aragchi explained. “But indirect negotiations can take place as they have in the past.” If talks falter, the U.S. and Israel have floated the possibility of targeted strikes on underground nuclear facilities. In recent weeks, the Trump administration launched a series of offensive attacks on the Houthis in Yemen to send a message to Tehran, which supports them. “Let nobody be fooled! The hundreds of attacks being made by Houthi, the sinister mobsters and thugs based in Yemen, who are hated by the Yemeni people, all emanate from, and are created by, IRAN,” Trump wrote on Truth Social at the time. “Iran has played ‘the innocent victim’ of rogue terrorists from which they’ve lost control, but they haven’t lost control,” he continued. “They’re dictating every move, giving them the weapons, supplying them with money and highly sophisticated Military equipment, and even, so-called, “Intelligence.’”
Trump reveals why he pulled Stefanik’s UN ambassador nomination: ‘Cannot take a chance’
Facing a razor-thin Republican majority in the House, President Donald Trump says he pulled GOP Rep. Elise Stefanik’s nomination to serve as United Nations ambassador because he doesn’t “want to take any chances.” The president made his comments Friday as he answered questions at the White House, one day after announcing in a social media post that he was pulling the nomination of Stefanik, a Republican from New York and top Trump ally in the House, due to concerns about passing his agenda through the chamber. “I said, ‘Elise, would you do me a favor? We cannot take a chance. We have a slim margin,’” Trump told reporters. WHAT STEFANIK TOLD FOX NEWS ABOUT HER ‘TEAM PLAYER’ DECISION TO STAY IN CONGRESS Trump’s move comes amid concerns by the White House and Republicans on Capitol Hill over next week’s special congressional elections in Florida. Voters in two congressional districts in Florida will head to the polls on Tuesday, as Republicans aim to keep control of both solidly red seats and give themselves slightly more breathing room in the House. The elections are in Florida’s 1st and 6th Congressional Districts, which Trump carried by 37 and 30 points in last year’s presidential election. ‘SHOW OF FORCE’ – TRUMP ALLY KICKING OFF CAMPAIGN IN RACE TO SUCCEED FLORIDA GOV. DESANTIS But the Democratic candidates have vastly outraised the Republican nominees, and polling in recent days suggested that the race in the 6th District was within the margin of error. The GOP currently holds a 218-213 majority in the House, with two vacant seats where Republicans stepped down and two where Democratic lawmakers died in March. “When it comes to Florida, you have two races, and they seem to be good,” Trump said. But pointing to the massive fundraising advantage by the Democrat candidates over the GOP contenders, Trump raised concerns, saying “You never know what happens in a case like that.” Jimmy Patronis, the Florida Chief Financial Officer, is favored over Democrat Gay Valimont in a multi-candidate field in the race to fill the vacant seat in the 1st CD, which is located in the far northwestern corner of Florida in the Panhandle region. Republican Matt Gaetz, who won re-election in the district in last November’s elections, resigned from office weeks later after Trump selected him to be his nominee for attorney general in his second administration. Gaetz later withdrew himself from cabinet consideration amid controversy. But it’s the race in the 6th CD, which is located on Florida’s Atlantic coast from Daytona Beach to just south of Saint Augustine and inland to the outskirts of Ocala, that is really raising concerns among some in the GOP. The race is to succeed Republican Michael Waltz, who stepped down from the seat on Jan. 20 after Trump named him his national security adviser. DEMOCRATS FAR FROM THRILLED ON POSSIBLE BIDEN POLITICAL REEMERGENCE Republican state Sen. Randy Fine is facing off against teacher Josh Weil, a Democrat, in a multi-candidate field. Weil grabbed plenty of national attention in recent weeks by topping Fine in the campaign cash battle by roughly a ten-to-one margin. The cash discrepancy in the 6th CD race spurred GOP-aligned outside groups to make last-minute contributions in support of Fine in the closing days of the campaign, with conservative super PACs launching ads spotlighting Trump’s support of Fine. “I would have preferred if our candidate had raised money at a faster rate and gotten on TV quicker,” Rep. Richard Hudson of North Carolina, the chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee, told reporters earlier this week. But Hudson added that Fine is “doing what he needs to do. He’s on TV now.” And he emphasized, “We’re going to win the seat. I’m not concerned at all.” Trump, pointing to Fine, on Friday acknowledged that “our candidate doesn’t have that kind of money.” There’s been criticism of Fine by some fellow Republicans. Former top Trump political adviser and conservative host Steve Bannon warned that Fine “isn’t winning.” And two-term Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told reporters last week that the GOP would underperform in the race, arguing that “it’s a reflection of the candidate running in that race.” But it’s worth pointing out the contentious history between DeSantis and Fine, who was the first Florida Republican to flip his endorsement from DeSantis to Trump during the 2024 Republican presidential nomination battle. In the 1st District, where there is less concern by Republicans about losing the seat, Valimont topped Patronis in fundraising by roughly a five-to-one margin. While the races in the two Republican-dominated districts are far from ideal for the Democrats to try and flip, the elections are the first opportunity for voters and donors to try and make a difference since Trump’s return to power in the White House. And Democrats say the surge in fundraising for their candidates is a sign their party is motivated amid voters’ frustrations with the sweeping and controversial moves made by Trump in his opening weeks back in office. “The American people are not buying what the Republicans are selling,” House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries told reporters earlier this week. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Jeffries and other Democrats aren’t predicting victory. But Jeffries, the top Democrat in the House, highlighted that “these districts are so Republican, there would ordinarily be no reason to believe that the races will be close, but what I can say, almost guaranteed, is that the Democratic candidate in both of these Florida special elections will significantly overperform.” Stefanik represents New York’s 21st Congressional Distirct, a large, mostly rural, district in the northernmost reaches of the state that includes most of the Adirondack Mountains and the Thousand Islands region. She cruised to re-election last November by 24 points. “We don’t want to take any chances. We don’t want to experiment,” Trump said as he pointed to what would have been a special election later this year to fill Stefanik’s seat if she had resigned if confirmed
Judges extend orders against deportation flights, including wartime act on violent Venezuelan gang members
A D.C. federal judge on Friday extended a restraining order against the Alien Enemies Act, a 1798 wartime immigration law the Trump administration enacted to deport Venezuelan nationals who are Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang members in the U.S. illegally. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ruled the extension will run through April 12. Also on Friday, in a separate ruling, a federal judge in Boston blocked the deportation of migrants to countries where they have no existing relationship without a chance to go into court to contest that move. Last week, Boasberg issued a temporary restraining blocked the president from using the act to deport Venezuelan nationals, stating he needed more time to consider the merits of the case. TRUMP DOJ HAMMERS JUDGE’S ‘DIGRESSIVE MICROMANAGEMENT,’ SEEKS MORE TIME TO ANSWER 5 QUESTIONS In a bench ruling, he ordered all planes carrying Venezuelan nationals or other deportees under the Alien Enemies Act be returned. The administration later filed an emergency request for the U.S. appeals court to intervene. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Fox News Digital’s Haley Chi-Sing and Breanne Deppisch contributed to this report.
Trump doubles down on acquiring Greenland for ‘world peace’ amid Vance visit
President Donald Trump stressed the need to acquire Greenland as part of the U.S. for international security purposes Friday, as Vice President JD Vance conducted a trip there with second lady Usha Vance. Although the Danish territory has said it is seeking independence from Copenhagen and isn’t interested in becoming part of the U.S., Trump has repeatedly offered, dating back to his first administration, a desire to secure Greenland for the U.S. as Russian and Chinese presence grows in the Arctic. “If you look at Greenland right now, if you look at the waterways, you have Chinese and Russian ships all over the place, and we’re not going to be able to do that,” Trump told reporters Friday. “We’re not relying on Denmark or anybody to take care of that situation. And we’re not talking about peace for the United States, we’re talking about world peace, we’re talking about international security.” VANCE SOLIDIFIES DOMINANCE DRIVING EUROPEAN FOREIGN POLICY AHEAD OF GREENLAND TRIP The Vances, along with National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee, arrived in Greenland on Friday to visit Pituffik Space Base, the Department of Defense’s northernmost military installation. The base is home to the Space Force’s 821st Space Base Group to conduct missile warning, missile defense and space surveillance operations. Despite the Trump administration’s push to secure Greenland, leaders in Denmark and Greenland remain staunchly against the president’s wishes, even as Greenland’s prime minister has called for independence from Copenhagen. But the Trump administration has pointed out that Denmark has faced backlash for its treatment of indigenous people from Greenland. A group of indigenous women from Greenland sued the Danish government in May 2024 and accused Danish health officials of fitting them with intrauterine devices without their knowledge between the 1960s and 1970s. TRUMP REMAINS OPTIMISTIC ABOUT ODDS OF ACQUIRING GREENLAND: ‘I THINK IT’LL HAPPEN’ Both Denmark and Greenland initiated an investigation into the matter in 2022, and the report is expected for release this year. A senior White House official said in a statement to Fox News Digital that Denmark’s treatment of the people of Greenland will receive ample attention during Vance’s visit. “Unfortunately, Danish leaders have spent decades mistreating the Greenlandic people, treating them like second-class citizens and allowing infrastructure on the island to fall into disrepair. Expect the Vice President to emphasize these points as well,” the official said Thursday. Greenland is rich in natural resources, including oil and natural gas, and both Russia and China have bolstered their presence in the region in recent years.
Two trans inmates ordered back to women’s prisons in Reagan-appointed judge’s injunction
Transgender inmates who were moved from a women’s prison to an all-male facility, after President Donald Trump’s executive order mandating inmates live in facilities corresponding to their biological sex, are now being sent back to the women’s prison after a judge issued a preliminary injunction. “This is the latest example of an activist judge attempting to seize power at the expense of the American people who overwhelmingly voted to elect President Trump,” a Department of Justice (DOJ) spokesperson told Fox News Digital in a statement Friday. “The Department of Justice has vigorously defended President Trump’s executive actions, including the Defending Women Executive Order, and will continue to do so.” U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth in Washington issued the injunction last week after the two inmates, identified in court documents as Rachel and Ellen Doe, were added as plaintiffs to a lawsuit against Trump’s executive order with nearly a dozen other inmates. TRANS INMATE IN PRISON FOR KILLING BABY MUST GET GENDER SURGERY AT ‘EARLIEST OPPORTUNITY’: JUDGE “The fact that they have already been transferred and, allegedly, have been abused at their new facilities can only strengthen their claims of irreparable harm,” Lamberth, a Reagan-appointed U.S. district court judge, wrote in the injunction. The court documents also allege that since being transferred to a male prison, “they have been unable to access bras and women’s underwear” while being subjected to “sexual harassment” at the new facilities. The Bureau of Prisons did not respond when reached for comment Friday. FEDERAL JUDGE HALTS PLANNED MOVE OF TRANS INMATES TO FACILITIES FOR THEIR BIOLOGICAL SEX The original lawsuit the two new inmates were added to alleged that “the inmates, all of whom are transgender women, “will not be safe” if transferred to men’s facilities, the lawsuit states, and the inmates will be at risk of “sexual harassment, assault, and rape.” This injunction adds to a lengthy list of legal battles the Trump DOJ faces regarding the president’s executive orders. The first lawsuit against Trump’s “two sexes” executive order came from a transgender inmate receiving taxpayer-funded medical treatments just days after Trump signed the order in January. That inmate, anonymously identified as Maria Moe, is being represented by advocacy groups GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders and National Center for Lesbian Rights and Lowenstein Sandler LLP. Once Trump signed the executive order, Moe was transferred to a men’s prison facility, and BOP records changed the sex from “female” to “male,” the complaint says. TRANS INMATE WHO KILLED BABY AND IDENTIFIES AS MUSLIM WOMAN SUES CHAPLAIN FOR ALLEGEDLY NOT ALLOWING HIJAB At least 15 trans prisoners are now protected by orders blocking or reversing the transfers, the Associated Press reported. Lamberth has not yet ruled on a lawsuit filed this month by three other inmates—a transgender woman in a men’s prison and two transgender men in women’s prisons—who are challenging the executive order’s ban on transgender medical treatments in prisons.
RFK Jr. backs WV push for SNAP waivers, work mandates under ‘MAHA’
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., spoke Friday in West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle, as Gov. Patrick Morrisey signed the first letters of intent seeking waivers to allow the Mountain State to eliminate soda from SNAP benefit eligibility. “We have a public health crisis in this country, and, unfortunately, West Virginia is leading the way,” Kennedy said, surrounded by children and local dignitaries at a Catholic school in Martinsburg. Morrisey also signed landmark legislation banning food dyes in West Virginia in support of Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” agenda. “I’m very, very grateful to Governor Morrisey for his visionary leadership and getting West Virginia to lead the way in transitioning off of processed foods. When my uncle was president, 3% of Americans had chronic disease, and we spent zero dollars on chronic disease in this country. There were no medications [for it].” Kennedy claimed that, by contrast, the government spends more on Americans’ health issues than the entire defense budget. WV GOV SIGNS RILEY GAINES ACT He said that Congress usually debates how to pay for these increased costs, not how to eliminate the health risks and systemic issues that lead to Americans’ globally-low-ranked collective health. Morrisey praised Kennedy for attending the ceremony, remarking that it proves the “MAHA” movement started “right here in West Virginia.” He signed HB 2354 on Monday, which bans the preservative butylated hydroxyanisole, as well as food dyes, from schools, beginning in August and for general sale, starting in 2028. COAL STILL KEY TO US ENERGY DOMINANCE: WV GOV “We’re cleaning up our foods, promoting exercise, and putting nutrition back into SNAP. I’m committed to Secretary Kennedy’s vision for America and raising health standards here in the Mountain State,” he said Friday from Berkeley County. Morrisey also plans to implement work requirements for most SNAP recipients, stating that able-bodied applicants must work—citing West Virginia’s last-place ranking in workforce participation as justification. State Sen. Jason Barrett, R-Martinsburg, who also helped to spearhead the food dye legislation in Charleston, thanked Kennedy for his leadership on the federal level on the issue of Americans’ deteriorating diets and health. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “Our country is in debt to you for doing that.” Barrett said that when he and Del. Evan Worrell, R-Barboursville, began working on the food dye ban and other legislation, they were warned that food and beverage special interests would be coming after them politically. “My response to ‘big food’ and ‘big drink’ is: Big deal – the people of West Virginia are worth it.”
Trump holds ‘extremely productive call’ with Canadian prime minister: ‘We agree on many things’
President Donald Trump said he held an “extremely productive call” with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Friday. “I just finished speaking with Prime Minister Mark Carney, of Canada. It was an extremely productive call, we agree on many things, and will be meeting immediately after Canada’s upcoming Election to work on elements of Politics, Business, and all other factors, that will end up being great for both the United States of America and Canada,” Trump wrote on this Truth Social account. It was the first time the two leaders have spoken. On Thursday, Carney said the “old relationship” with the United States “is over” while vowing to engage in a renegotiation over a trade agreement. Carney, 60, who won the Liberal leadership this month with 86% of the vote after former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stood down, was speaking in Ottawa after meeting the nation’s provincial premiers. CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER MARK CARNEY SAYS ‘OLD RELATIONSHIP’ WITH US ‘IS OVER’ “The old relationship we had with the United States, based on deepening integration of our economies and tight security and military cooperations, is over,” he told reporters. “The time will come for a broad renegotiation of our security and trade relationship.” CANADA EXPLOITING ‘LOOPHOLE’ HURTING US DAIRY FARMERS AMID TRUMP TARIFFS, SENATORS SAY “What is clear is that we as Canadians have agency. We have power. We are masters in our own home,” he also said. “We control our destiny. We can give ourselves much more than any foreign government, including the United States, can ever take away,” Carney added. Fox News Digital’s Louis Casiano contributed to this report.
State Department will absorb remaining USAID programming as independent agency is dismantled
FIRST ON FOX: The State Department is absorbing the remaining operations and programs U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) runs, upending its function as an independent agency, according to an internal USAID memo obtained by Fox News Digital. While USAID historically has functioned as an independent agency that works to deliver aid to impoverished countries and development assistance, President Donald Trump appointed Secretary of State Marco Rubio to serve as acting administrator of the organization in February amid concerns that USAID did not advance U.S. core interests. Now, the State Department is poised to officially take on USAID programs as part of a merger that aims to streamline operations to deliver foreign assistance, the memo said. It also will result in cuts for thousands of USAID employees. “By bringing USAID’s core life-saving and strategic aid programs under the umbrella of the State Department, this Administration will significantly enhance the efficiency, accountability, uniformity, and strategic impact of foreign assistance programs — and ensure that our nation and President to speaks with one voice in foreign affairs,” Jeremy Lewin, who is performing the duties of USAID Deputy Administrator for Policy and Programming & Chief Operating Officer, said in a Friday statement to Fox News Digital. ‘HYSTERIA’: WHITE HOUSE SHUTS DOWN CONCERNS OVER USAID DOCUMENT PURGE As a result, the State Department is moving to “retire” USAID as an independent operation and is moving forward with plans for a reduction in force, according to the memo. Altogether, more than 4,650 USAID personnel will be cut from USAID, according to a State Department senior official. Personnel will start to receive notices Friday regarding their status at USAID with separation dates either on July 1 or Sept. 2. Between those three months, the State Department will take on responsibility for USAID programming, and will assess staffing requirements to proceed with an independent hiring process. Eligible USAID employees may apply for those positions as remaining USAID personnel move to shut down or transfer USAID operations to the State Department. “A separate process will be established for hiring personnel into available roles at the State Department,” the USAID memo said. “While the details are still being finalized, we are committed to sharing additional information as soon as it becomes available, likely in April or May.” The announcement comes as the Trump administration has moved to shutter USAID amid widespread government cuts stemming from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) that SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk is leading. USAID has come under scrutiny amid DOGE’s cuts for wasteful spending that didn’t align with the Trump administration, including funding a $1.5 million program aimed to “advance diversity, equity and inclusion in Serbia’s workplaces and business communities and a $70,000 program for a “DEI musical” in Ireland. ‘FIRED ME ILLEGALLY’: EMOTIONAL EX-USAID EMPLOYEES LEAVE BUILDING WITH BELONGINGS AFTER MASS LAYOFFS Rubio said March 11 that the State Department had concluded a six-week review and would cancel more than 80% of USAID programs. That translates to an elimination of roughly 5,200 of USAID’s 6,200 programs. “Foreign assistance done right can advance our national interests, protect our borders, and strengthen our partnerships with key allies,” Rubio said in a statement to Fox News Digital Friday. “Unfortunately, USAID strayed from its original mission long ago. As a result, the gains were too few and the costs were too high.” “We are reorienting our foreign assistance programs to align directly with what is best for the United States and our citizens,” Rubio said. “We are continuing essential lifesaving programs and making strategic investments that strengthen our partners and our own country.”
House Judiciary calls on Biden DOJ prosecutor to testify in Dr Eithan Haim case
FIRST ON FOX: The House Judiciary Committee sent a letter Thursday to Tina Ansari, the lead federal prosecutor in a case brought by the Biden Department of Justice, against Dr. Eithan Haim for leaking records that revealed Texas Children’s Hospital was performing medical procedures on minors. Ansari indicted Haim on federal charges after he exposed the Texas medical system for performing transgender medical procedures on minors. Ansari was removed from the criminal case, which has since been dismissed by the Trump Justice Department, after information showed that her family was involved extensively in business dealings with the Texas medical hospital system. NFL LEGEND BRETT FAVRE SLAMS OREGON HS OFFICIALS AFTER TRANS RUNNER BLOWS AWAY FEMALE COMPETITION Fox News Digital obtained the letter to Ansari, which reads, “You were the lead prosecutor on Dr. Haim’s case. You allegedly were removed from the case for failing to report an enormous conflict of interest stemming from the substantial financial and political ties to your close family members.” “This lack of candor and apparent conflict of interest raises further concerns around DOJ’s weaponization against Dr. Haim for blowing the whistle on [Texas Children’s Hospital]. Your testimony will inform the Committee’s legislative reforms aimed at enhancing civil liberties, protecting minors, combatting conflicts of interest, and preventing and prohibiting the weaponization of DOJ to prosecute individuals for holding disfavored viewpoints.” A source familiar with the hearing told Fox News Digital that Haim and his attorney, Mark Lytle, are expected to testify alongside Ansari. TRUMP ADMIN CUTS ADDITIONAL $1M IN FEDERAL FUNDING FOR ‘TRANSGENDER ANIMAL’ EXPERIMENTS Marcella Burke, Haim’s attorney at the time President Donald Trump’s Justice Department dismissed the case, told Fox News Digital in January, “The case has been dismissed with prejudice so that the federal government can never again come after him for blowing the whistle on the secret pediatric transgender program at Texas Children’s Hospital.” During the case, Haim’s lawyers argued that the leaked files contained redacted patient information despite DOJ prosecutors claiming that the records contained the names of children who had been receiving puberty-blocking devices, among other gender transition procedures. MAINE HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETE SENDS MESSAGE TO GOVERNOR AMID TRANS-ATHLETE POLICY CONTROVERSY Haim faced up to 10 years in federal prison and a maximum fine of up to $250,000 if he would have been found guilty in the Biden DOJ-driven indictment.
US accuses Denmark of treating Greenlanders as ‘second-class citizens’ during Vance visit to Arctic base
Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha are visiting Greenland on Friday, an island of less than 60,000 people that has become central to President Donald Trump’s foreign policy. The Vances are visiting Pituffik Space Force Base, where they will receive a briefing on Arctic security issues and meet with U.S. service members. “The Vice President and Second Lady are embarking on a historic expedition with their visit to Greenland, where the vice president will emphasize the importance of bolstering Artic security in places like Pituffik Space Base,” a senior White House official said. “Unfortunately, Danish leaders have spent decades mistreating the Greenlandic people, treating them like second class citizens and allowing infrastructure on the island to fall into disrepair. Expect the Vice President to emphasize these points as well.” Usha Vance was originally slated to travel to Greenland without the vice president on a cultural trip to watch a dog sledding race. However, earlier this week the vice president opted to join, and the trip was shifted to focus on national security. TRUMP SAYS ‘WE NEED GREENLAND FOR INTERNATIONAL SAFETY AND SECURITY’ AHEAD OF VANCE TRIP Vance is the highest-ranking official to ever travel as far north as Pituffik, the White House said. Vance’s first trip abroad to Paris and Germany made waves for his tough talk on Europe, which iced over the U.S.’ relationship with some nations but precipitated a mobilization of funding by Europe for its own defense. Trump has made it a mission to take over Greenland from Denmark in his second administration. “We need Greenland for national security and international security,” he told reporters in the Oval Office. VANCE EVISCERATES ‘SOVIET’-STYLE EUROPEAN CENSORSHIP IN ADDRESS TO MUNICH SECURITY CONFERENCE “So we’ll, I think, we’ll go as far as we have to go,” he continued. “We need Greenland. And the world needs us to have Greenland, including Denmark. Denmark has to have us have Greenland. And, you know, we’ll see what happens. But if we don’t have Greenland, we can’t have great international security.” “I view it from a security standpoint, we have to be there,” Trump added. Greenland relies heavily on welfare from Denmark, which currently contributes around half of its annual budget, amounting to around $700 million per year. In January, in response to Trump’s stated ambitions, Denmark announced it would spend another $2 billion to bolster defenses on the island. VANCE CELEBRATES ‘NO MORE QUOTAS’ IN THE MILITARY AS HE FIRES GUNS AND VISITS WITH MARINES The Trump administration has dangled billions for Greenland to invest in developing its natural resources — rare Earth minerals and oil and gas reserves. However, mining Greenland has proven notoriously difficult given that 80% of the island is covered in a sheet of ice. Greenland’s Prime Minister Mute Egede earlier this week called the upcoming Vance visit “very aggressive American pressure against the Greenlandic community” and called on European leaders to stand against it. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Trump established the Space Force in 2019 as a way to defend against encroachment on America’s interests in Earth’s orbit. In recent years, China and Russia have stepped up their Arctic presence, investing in icebreakers, new nuclear submarines and rare Earth minerals.