U.S., Greenland Officials Meet As Trump Threatens Military Action
Plus: Joe Rogan Compares ICE To ‘The Gestapo’; NASA Wants To Go Back To The Moon
America’s going back to the moon…even if astronauts aren’t landing on it again just yet. 🚀
READY TO LAUNCH: The upcoming Artemis II mission includes four astronauts who will fly around the moon on a 10-day mission to test out the Orion spacecraft’s capabilities in deep space. It sets up a mission to land on the moon again in the next couple years.
This lunar mission will be the first to carry a Canadian astronaut and carry a woman into deep space.
LUNAR AMBITIONS: NASA also announced, alongside the Department of Energy, plans to develop a nuclear reactor on the moon to power a sustained human presence on the lunar surface. President Trump said in December that he wants to install a lunar surface reactor on the moon by 2030.
MOONWALKERS: NASA has sent 24 Americans to the moon and 12 to the moon’s surface over the years, with Apollo 17 astronauts being the last people to set foot on the moon in 1972.
The official launch may be as soon as February, which gives us just enough time to brush up on some Sinatra. 🌝🎶
Mo News Team
🚨 ONE IMPORTANT THING
Denmark Rejects Trump’s Greenland Push, Vows Continued Talks
President Trump is once again escalating his push for the U.S. to acquire Greenland, insisting the island is vital to U.S. national security and refusing to rule out taking it by military force. But Greenland’s government and Denmark, which oversees the territory, say they’re not on board.
WHITE HOUSE MEETING: After weeks of social media posts and tit-for-tat public statements, on Wednesday officials from Greenland and Denmark met in-person with U.S. officials, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, at the White House.
The outcome: no deal. Denmark’s foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said there remains a “fundamental disagreement” with the Trump administration— but they “agree to disagree.”
Greenland is self-governing and has consistently said it is not for sale.
INSIDE THE MEETING
Denmark and the U.S. agreed to keep talking and to form a high-level “working group” focused on Arctic security concerns.
Rasmussen said any ideas that violate Denmark’s territorial integrity or Greenland’s right to self-determination are “totally unacceptable.”
He added that Denmark believes that Greenland's long-term security "can be ensured inside the current framework" through the 1951 Greenland Defense Agreement between the U.S. and Denmark and the NATO treaty.
Meanwhile, the president says the U.S. “can’t rely on Denmark being able to defend itself on its own.”
Trump accused Denmark of putting “an extra dog sled” as protection.
WHY GREENLAND?
Trump says Greenland is strategically essential — especially as Arctic ice melts and new shipping lanes open. The island, three times the size of Texas, sits at a crossroads of U.S., Russian, and Chinese military interests and is rich in natural resources.
What about NATO? Because Denmark is a NATO member, any U.S. military move against Greenland would effectively pit the alliance against itself — a scenario experts say could mean the end of NATO.
Several allies, including Germany, Norway, and Sweden, have already signaled they may send additional forces to Greenland amid Trump’s threats.
How do Americans feel? New Reuters/Ipsos polling shows Americans oppose acquiring Greenland: 47% to 17%, and just 4% support using military force. More broadly, 56% of Americans say Trump has “gone too far” with overseas military actions. His foreign policy approval stands at 37%.
And 85% of Greenlanders also are against a U.S. purchase.
Fun historical fact: The last time the U.S. formally offered to buy Greenland was in 1946, when President Harry Truman proposed paying $100 million in gold. Denmark also said no back then.
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🚨 ONE THING WE’RE FOLLOWING
Anti-ICE Sentiment Grows As Feds Double Down
Anti-ICE protests continue in Minnesota, a week after the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Renee Good. On Tuesday, six federal prosecutors in Minnesota resigned over concerns about the direction of the investigation into Good’s death, specifically the push to investigate Good’s widow.
PROTESTS: Federal agents threw flash bangs and tear gas towards protesters outside the federal Whipple building in Minneapolis. At least eight people involved in the protests were arrested on Tuesday, Jan. 13.
MORE FROM THE ICE SHOOTING CASE: The ICE agent who fatally shot Good, identified as Jonathan Ross, reportedly suffered internal bleeding to the torso after the incident, U.S. officials said.
ON THE GROUND
A federal judge in Minnesota declined Wednesday to immediately block the deployment of additional immigration agents to the Minneapolis area after state officials sued to challenge the surge of federal officers. There are more than 2,400 federal personnel in the area — more than three times the number of local police officers.
ARRESTS: The Department of Homeland Security says more than 2,400 undocumented immigrants have been arrested in the Minnesota area since the operation began Nov. 29.
Minneapolis is on edge after dozens of images and videos in recent days have shown ICE agents pulling people from vehicles, knocking down doors, and tackling individuals who were filming the them. In several cases, the incidents have involved U.S. citizens.
Federal personnel arrested two U.S. citizens working at Target in a Minneapolis suburb last Thursday, according to video footage and local officials.
The president of Oglala Sioux Tribe, an Indigenous group, said that ICE agents arrested and detained several of its members in Minneapolis last Friday.
Some Minneapolis residents say they’re living in fear if they have darker skin, and that they need to carry proof of citizenship.
STANDING BY THE STRATEGY: “We’re doing the right thing,” border czar Tom Homan told reporters Wednesday. “They can protest all they want.”
TRUMP LOSING SUPPORT
Polling shows public support for the immigration crackdown has waned since Trump returned to office. A YouGov poll released Tuesday found the president’s net approval on immigration has fallen from +14 shortly after his inauguration to –9 today.
Podcaster Joe Rogan — who formally endorsed Trump in 2024 — has expressed concern in recent months about ICE tactics. This week, he compared ICE agents to “the Gestapo.”
“Are we really going to be the Gestapo? ‘Where’s your papers?’ Is that what we’ve come to?" Rogan said on his podcast, calling recent anti-ICE protests in Minneapolis — and the fatal shooting of Renee Good — “complicated.”
⏳ THE SPEED READ
🚨NATION
US freezes all visa processing for 75 countries, including Somalia, Russia, Iran (FOX)
A Ford worker called out Trump. The president flipped him off. Now, he’s been suspended (YAHOO NEWS)
Democrat Elissa Slotkin says she is under investigation for video on illegal orders (NPR)
House Homeland Democrats launch investigation into Noem with eyes on impeachment (THE HILL)
🌎 AROUND THE WORLD
US military action in Iran appears increasingly likely, report says (GUARDIAN)
Costa Rica’s security director says plot to assassinate president uncovered (AP)
Construction crane falls on a passenger train in Thailand, killing at least 30 people (NBC)
Ukraine’s new defense chief reveals 200,000 soldiers have gone AWOL and 2 million are dodging draft (CNN)
📱BUSINESS, SCIENCE & TECH
Massive Verizon network outage across U.S; users stuck in SOS mode (MO NEWS)
California to investigate Elon Musk’s Grok over sexualized images (POLITICO)
NASA astronauts prepare to leave the space station due to a medical issue (NBC)
RFK Jr. selects new members, including self-described ‘anti-vaxxer,’ for advisory panel (THE HILL)
🎬 SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT
‘West Wing’ actor Timothy Busfield due in court on child sex abuse charges in New Mexico (AP)
‘Euphoria’ sets return date, drops high-octane trailer for season 3 (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER)
Ranger Suarez agrees to 5-year, $130M deal with Red Sox (ESPN)
Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey to star in ‘Sunday in the Park With George’ revival in London (VARIETY)
ICYMI FROM THE 📲
In case you missed it… Rock on, international diplomacy style. 🤘🥁
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung ended their countries’ two-day summit with an impromptu drum session in matching jumpsuits. 🇰🇷🇯🇵
The world leaders played along to global hits, including “Golden” from Netflix’s KPop Demon Hunters.