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Bernie Sanders speaks at rally in Detroit, Michigan, with striking UAW workers on September 15, 2023.
We refuse to live in an oligarchy; we refuse to accept a society in which so few have so much and so many have so little.
The following are the remarks, as prepared for delivery, by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) at the United Auto Workers rally in Detroit, Michigan, on Friday, September 15, 2023.
Let me thank Shawn Fain, the president of the UAW and all of you for inviting me to be with you today. It’s an honor.
And let me thank the UAW for standing up and demanding that the working class of this country finally receives the respect and the dignity which it deserves.
Over the past 50 years, there has been a massive redistribution of wealth. The problem is that it has gone in the wrong direction.
Let’s be clear: The fight that you are waging here is not only about decent wages, decent benefits, and decent working conditions in the automobile industry.
No. The fight you are waging is a fight against the outrageous level of corporate greed and arrogance that we are seeing on the part of CEOs who think they have a right to have it all, and could care less about the needs of their workers.
The fight you are waging is to rebuild the struggling middle class of our country that was once the envy of the world.
So today I say to all Americans that the fight that the men and women of the UAW are waging now is not just about the automobile industry. It is about the need to create an economy that works for all of us and not just the top 1%.
In other words, the fight of the UAW against corporate greed is our fight—the fight of every American.
Let us be clear as to what’s going on in the American economy today and what has gone on for decades. And that is that the CEOs and the people on top have been doing phenomenally well while the working class has been falling further and further behind.
Unbelievably, in the United States today, at a time of massive income and wealth inequality, weekly wages for the average American worker are actually lower than they were 50 years ago after adjusting for inflation.
In other words, despite a massive increase in worker productivity in the automobile industry and every other sector of our economy; despite CEOs now making 400 times more than what their employees earn; despite record-breaking corporate profits; despite corporate America spending hundreds of billions on dividends and stock buybacks, the average American worker is worse off today than he or she was 50 years ago.
That, brothers and sisters is what this strike is about and that’s why every worker in this country should support your struggle.
In America today, while we have more income and wealth inequality than ever before, over 60% of workers are living paycheck to paycheck—paycheck to paycheck. That means that every day they are living under incredible stress worried about paying the rent, worried about being able to afford a doctor when someone in the family gets sick, worried about childcare, worried about whether they’ll be able to send their kids to college. I grew up in a family that lived paycheck to paycheck. And I know a little bit about that. This is the richest country in the history of the world. And families in America, in the automobile industry and every other industry, should not have to live with that kind of stress.
Over the past 50 years, there has been a massive redistribution of wealth. The problem is that it has gone in the wrong direction. Since 1975, $50 trillion in wealth has been redistributed from the bottom 90% to the top 1%—primarily because a growing percentage of corporate profits have been flowing into the stock portfolios of the wealthy.
In 1937, the UAW played an historic role in American history. The auto workers of that time had the extraordinary courage to take on the greed and power of the auto industry.
And here we are now in 2023—86 years later and once again the UAW is helping to lead the effort to rebuild and grow the middle class.
So today, I say to the CEOs of General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis: Understand the enormous financial sacrifices your workers have made over the years. End your greed. Treat your employees with the respect and dignity they are due.
I say to Mary Barra, the CEO of General Motors. Last year, you made over $29 million. Since you became CEO eight years ago, you have made over $200 million in total compensation. Do you have any clue what it’s like for one of your workers to try to survive on $17 an hour—which is the average starting wage of an auto worker? Do you know what it’s like to try to raise a family, put food on the table, and pay the rent at $20 an hour?
I say to Carlos Taveres, the CEO of Stellantis. Last year you received a 22% pay raise and now make over $25 million in total compensation. Do you know what it’s like to be classified as a “temp” worker, and despite working year after year remain a “temp” worker receiving wages and benefits significantly lower than people beside you doing the same exact work? Do you know how that feels?
I say to Jim Farley, the CEO of Ford. Last year, you made nearly $21 million in total compensation, and my guess is that when you retire from your job you’re going to have a great pension and all kinds of other benefits. Do you have any clue as to what it’s like to be a worker and worry about how you’re going to survive in retirement when you have no savings in the bank?
I am getting a little sick and tired of hearing the corporate media tell us how bad a strike will be for the economy and how many billions of dollars the auto industry may lose as a result.
Let’s be clear.
What the UAW is fighting for is not radical.
In the first half of 2023, the Big Three automakers made $21 billion in profits—up 80% from the same time period last year.
Over the past decade, the Big Three made $250 billion in profits in North America alone.
Last year, these companies spent $9 billion—not to improve the lives of their workers, not to make their factories safer, but on stock buybacks and dividends to make their wealthy executives and stockholders even richer.
Incredibly, over the last four years, CEO pay at the Big Three has increased by more than 40%.
Meanwhile, while the CEOs and stockholders in the auto industry make out like bandits, the workers who build the vehicles earn totally inadequate wages and, over the last several decades, have fallen further and further behind.
There was once a time when a union job in the automobile industry was the gold standard for the working class of this country. Those days are long gone.
Unbelievably, over the last 20 years, the average wage for American autoworkers has decreased by 30% after adjusting for inflation.
And let me tell you something else. I am getting a little sick and tired of hearing the corporate media tell us how bad a strike will be for the economy and how many billions of dollars the auto industry may lose as a result.
When you have auto workers who cannot afford to buy the cars they make on the assembly line, that is bad for the economy.
When you have auto workers who cannot afford to take out a mortgage to buy a modest home while the companies they work for make record breaking profits, that is bad for the economy.
When you have auto workers who can’t afford childcare or to send their kids to college, that’s bad for the economy.
No, brothers and sisters, what the UAW is fighting for is not radical.
It is the totally reasonable demand that autoworkers finally receive a fair share of the record-breaking profits that their labor has produced.
The CEOs of General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis and their major stockholders on Wall Street have got to understand that they cannot have it all.
It means that if the Big Three can afford to spend $9 billion on stock buybacks and dividends last year, they can afford to provide a decent COLA to autoworkers so that their wages keep pace with inflation.
And let’s be clear. While decent wages are a key demand for the UAW, there are other important contract changes that the union has proposed.
It means that the time is long overdue to get rid of the disastrous two-tier system under which newer workers earn lower wages and receive less generous benefits than others doing the same exact work.
It means finally ending the use of “temporary workers” who are ruthlessly exploited and treated like second-class citizens.
It means that all autoworkers receive a decent pension plan so they’re able to retire with security.
It means that workers should have the right to strike when an auto company announces that they will be shutting down another profitable plant in the United States of America.
And that’s not all.
It means that as we combat climate change and try to save this planet for our kids and future generations, that when the auto industry builds new electric vehicle and battery plants that the workers in those plants become part of the UAW and receive the same wages and benefits as union members.
Brothers and Sisters: The CEOs of General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis and their major stockholders on Wall Street have got to understand that they cannot have it all.
We refuse to live in an oligarchy. We refuse to accept a society in which so few have so much and so many have so little.
Enough is enough!
Let us stand together to end to corporate greed.
Let us stand together to rebuild the disappearing middle class.
Let us create an economy that works for all of us, not just the top 1%.
Let us all stand in solidarity with the UAW.
Thank you all very much.
Trump and Musk are on an unconstitutional rampage, aiming for virtually every corner of the federal government. These two right-wing billionaires are targeting nurses, scientists, teachers, daycare providers, judges, veterans, air traffic controllers, and nuclear safety inspectors. No one is safe. The food stamps program, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are next. It’s an unprecedented disaster and a five-alarm fire, but there will be a reckoning. The people did not vote for this. The American people do not want this dystopian hellscape that hides behind claims of “efficiency.” Still, in reality, it is all a giveaway to corporate interests and the libertarian dreams of far-right oligarchs like Musk. Common Dreams is playing a vital role by reporting day and night on this orgy of corruption and greed, as well as what everyday people can do to organize and fight back. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. |
The following are the remarks, as prepared for delivery, by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) at the United Auto Workers rally in Detroit, Michigan, on Friday, September 15, 2023.
Let me thank Shawn Fain, the president of the UAW and all of you for inviting me to be with you today. It’s an honor.
And let me thank the UAW for standing up and demanding that the working class of this country finally receives the respect and the dignity which it deserves.
Over the past 50 years, there has been a massive redistribution of wealth. The problem is that it has gone in the wrong direction.
Let’s be clear: The fight that you are waging here is not only about decent wages, decent benefits, and decent working conditions in the automobile industry.
No. The fight you are waging is a fight against the outrageous level of corporate greed and arrogance that we are seeing on the part of CEOs who think they have a right to have it all, and could care less about the needs of their workers.
The fight you are waging is to rebuild the struggling middle class of our country that was once the envy of the world.
So today I say to all Americans that the fight that the men and women of the UAW are waging now is not just about the automobile industry. It is about the need to create an economy that works for all of us and not just the top 1%.
In other words, the fight of the UAW against corporate greed is our fight—the fight of every American.
Let us be clear as to what’s going on in the American economy today and what has gone on for decades. And that is that the CEOs and the people on top have been doing phenomenally well while the working class has been falling further and further behind.
Unbelievably, in the United States today, at a time of massive income and wealth inequality, weekly wages for the average American worker are actually lower than they were 50 years ago after adjusting for inflation.
In other words, despite a massive increase in worker productivity in the automobile industry and every other sector of our economy; despite CEOs now making 400 times more than what their employees earn; despite record-breaking corporate profits; despite corporate America spending hundreds of billions on dividends and stock buybacks, the average American worker is worse off today than he or she was 50 years ago.
That, brothers and sisters is what this strike is about and that’s why every worker in this country should support your struggle.
In America today, while we have more income and wealth inequality than ever before, over 60% of workers are living paycheck to paycheck—paycheck to paycheck. That means that every day they are living under incredible stress worried about paying the rent, worried about being able to afford a doctor when someone in the family gets sick, worried about childcare, worried about whether they’ll be able to send their kids to college. I grew up in a family that lived paycheck to paycheck. And I know a little bit about that. This is the richest country in the history of the world. And families in America, in the automobile industry and every other industry, should not have to live with that kind of stress.
Over the past 50 years, there has been a massive redistribution of wealth. The problem is that it has gone in the wrong direction. Since 1975, $50 trillion in wealth has been redistributed from the bottom 90% to the top 1%—primarily because a growing percentage of corporate profits have been flowing into the stock portfolios of the wealthy.
In 1937, the UAW played an historic role in American history. The auto workers of that time had the extraordinary courage to take on the greed and power of the auto industry.
And here we are now in 2023—86 years later and once again the UAW is helping to lead the effort to rebuild and grow the middle class.
So today, I say to the CEOs of General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis: Understand the enormous financial sacrifices your workers have made over the years. End your greed. Treat your employees with the respect and dignity they are due.
I say to Mary Barra, the CEO of General Motors. Last year, you made over $29 million. Since you became CEO eight years ago, you have made over $200 million in total compensation. Do you have any clue what it’s like for one of your workers to try to survive on $17 an hour—which is the average starting wage of an auto worker? Do you know what it’s like to try to raise a family, put food on the table, and pay the rent at $20 an hour?
I say to Carlos Taveres, the CEO of Stellantis. Last year you received a 22% pay raise and now make over $25 million in total compensation. Do you know what it’s like to be classified as a “temp” worker, and despite working year after year remain a “temp” worker receiving wages and benefits significantly lower than people beside you doing the same exact work? Do you know how that feels?
I say to Jim Farley, the CEO of Ford. Last year, you made nearly $21 million in total compensation, and my guess is that when you retire from your job you’re going to have a great pension and all kinds of other benefits. Do you have any clue as to what it’s like to be a worker and worry about how you’re going to survive in retirement when you have no savings in the bank?
I am getting a little sick and tired of hearing the corporate media tell us how bad a strike will be for the economy and how many billions of dollars the auto industry may lose as a result.
Let’s be clear.
What the UAW is fighting for is not radical.
In the first half of 2023, the Big Three automakers made $21 billion in profits—up 80% from the same time period last year.
Over the past decade, the Big Three made $250 billion in profits in North America alone.
Last year, these companies spent $9 billion—not to improve the lives of their workers, not to make their factories safer, but on stock buybacks and dividends to make their wealthy executives and stockholders even richer.
Incredibly, over the last four years, CEO pay at the Big Three has increased by more than 40%.
Meanwhile, while the CEOs and stockholders in the auto industry make out like bandits, the workers who build the vehicles earn totally inadequate wages and, over the last several decades, have fallen further and further behind.
There was once a time when a union job in the automobile industry was the gold standard for the working class of this country. Those days are long gone.
Unbelievably, over the last 20 years, the average wage for American autoworkers has decreased by 30% after adjusting for inflation.
And let me tell you something else. I am getting a little sick and tired of hearing the corporate media tell us how bad a strike will be for the economy and how many billions of dollars the auto industry may lose as a result.
When you have auto workers who cannot afford to buy the cars they make on the assembly line, that is bad for the economy.
When you have auto workers who cannot afford to take out a mortgage to buy a modest home while the companies they work for make record breaking profits, that is bad for the economy.
When you have auto workers who can’t afford childcare or to send their kids to college, that’s bad for the economy.
No, brothers and sisters, what the UAW is fighting for is not radical.
It is the totally reasonable demand that autoworkers finally receive a fair share of the record-breaking profits that their labor has produced.
The CEOs of General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis and their major stockholders on Wall Street have got to understand that they cannot have it all.
It means that if the Big Three can afford to spend $9 billion on stock buybacks and dividends last year, they can afford to provide a decent COLA to autoworkers so that their wages keep pace with inflation.
And let’s be clear. While decent wages are a key demand for the UAW, there are other important contract changes that the union has proposed.
It means that the time is long overdue to get rid of the disastrous two-tier system under which newer workers earn lower wages and receive less generous benefits than others doing the same exact work.
It means finally ending the use of “temporary workers” who are ruthlessly exploited and treated like second-class citizens.
It means that all autoworkers receive a decent pension plan so they’re able to retire with security.
It means that workers should have the right to strike when an auto company announces that they will be shutting down another profitable plant in the United States of America.
And that’s not all.
It means that as we combat climate change and try to save this planet for our kids and future generations, that when the auto industry builds new electric vehicle and battery plants that the workers in those plants become part of the UAW and receive the same wages and benefits as union members.
Brothers and Sisters: The CEOs of General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis and their major stockholders on Wall Street have got to understand that they cannot have it all.
We refuse to live in an oligarchy. We refuse to accept a society in which so few have so much and so many have so little.
Enough is enough!
Let us stand together to end to corporate greed.
Let us stand together to rebuild the disappearing middle class.
Let us create an economy that works for all of us, not just the top 1%.
Let us all stand in solidarity with the UAW.
Thank you all very much.
The following are the remarks, as prepared for delivery, by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) at the United Auto Workers rally in Detroit, Michigan, on Friday, September 15, 2023.
Let me thank Shawn Fain, the president of the UAW and all of you for inviting me to be with you today. It’s an honor.
And let me thank the UAW for standing up and demanding that the working class of this country finally receives the respect and the dignity which it deserves.
Over the past 50 years, there has been a massive redistribution of wealth. The problem is that it has gone in the wrong direction.
Let’s be clear: The fight that you are waging here is not only about decent wages, decent benefits, and decent working conditions in the automobile industry.
No. The fight you are waging is a fight against the outrageous level of corporate greed and arrogance that we are seeing on the part of CEOs who think they have a right to have it all, and could care less about the needs of their workers.
The fight you are waging is to rebuild the struggling middle class of our country that was once the envy of the world.
So today I say to all Americans that the fight that the men and women of the UAW are waging now is not just about the automobile industry. It is about the need to create an economy that works for all of us and not just the top 1%.
In other words, the fight of the UAW against corporate greed is our fight—the fight of every American.
Let us be clear as to what’s going on in the American economy today and what has gone on for decades. And that is that the CEOs and the people on top have been doing phenomenally well while the working class has been falling further and further behind.
Unbelievably, in the United States today, at a time of massive income and wealth inequality, weekly wages for the average American worker are actually lower than they were 50 years ago after adjusting for inflation.
In other words, despite a massive increase in worker productivity in the automobile industry and every other sector of our economy; despite CEOs now making 400 times more than what their employees earn; despite record-breaking corporate profits; despite corporate America spending hundreds of billions on dividends and stock buybacks, the average American worker is worse off today than he or she was 50 years ago.
That, brothers and sisters is what this strike is about and that’s why every worker in this country should support your struggle.
In America today, while we have more income and wealth inequality than ever before, over 60% of workers are living paycheck to paycheck—paycheck to paycheck. That means that every day they are living under incredible stress worried about paying the rent, worried about being able to afford a doctor when someone in the family gets sick, worried about childcare, worried about whether they’ll be able to send their kids to college. I grew up in a family that lived paycheck to paycheck. And I know a little bit about that. This is the richest country in the history of the world. And families in America, in the automobile industry and every other industry, should not have to live with that kind of stress.
Over the past 50 years, there has been a massive redistribution of wealth. The problem is that it has gone in the wrong direction. Since 1975, $50 trillion in wealth has been redistributed from the bottom 90% to the top 1%—primarily because a growing percentage of corporate profits have been flowing into the stock portfolios of the wealthy.
In 1937, the UAW played an historic role in American history. The auto workers of that time had the extraordinary courage to take on the greed and power of the auto industry.
And here we are now in 2023—86 years later and once again the UAW is helping to lead the effort to rebuild and grow the middle class.
So today, I say to the CEOs of General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis: Understand the enormous financial sacrifices your workers have made over the years. End your greed. Treat your employees with the respect and dignity they are due.
I say to Mary Barra, the CEO of General Motors. Last year, you made over $29 million. Since you became CEO eight years ago, you have made over $200 million in total compensation. Do you have any clue what it’s like for one of your workers to try to survive on $17 an hour—which is the average starting wage of an auto worker? Do you know what it’s like to try to raise a family, put food on the table, and pay the rent at $20 an hour?
I say to Carlos Taveres, the CEO of Stellantis. Last year you received a 22% pay raise and now make over $25 million in total compensation. Do you know what it’s like to be classified as a “temp” worker, and despite working year after year remain a “temp” worker receiving wages and benefits significantly lower than people beside you doing the same exact work? Do you know how that feels?
I say to Jim Farley, the CEO of Ford. Last year, you made nearly $21 million in total compensation, and my guess is that when you retire from your job you’re going to have a great pension and all kinds of other benefits. Do you have any clue as to what it’s like to be a worker and worry about how you’re going to survive in retirement when you have no savings in the bank?
I am getting a little sick and tired of hearing the corporate media tell us how bad a strike will be for the economy and how many billions of dollars the auto industry may lose as a result.
Let’s be clear.
What the UAW is fighting for is not radical.
In the first half of 2023, the Big Three automakers made $21 billion in profits—up 80% from the same time period last year.
Over the past decade, the Big Three made $250 billion in profits in North America alone.
Last year, these companies spent $9 billion—not to improve the lives of their workers, not to make their factories safer, but on stock buybacks and dividends to make their wealthy executives and stockholders even richer.
Incredibly, over the last four years, CEO pay at the Big Three has increased by more than 40%.
Meanwhile, while the CEOs and stockholders in the auto industry make out like bandits, the workers who build the vehicles earn totally inadequate wages and, over the last several decades, have fallen further and further behind.
There was once a time when a union job in the automobile industry was the gold standard for the working class of this country. Those days are long gone.
Unbelievably, over the last 20 years, the average wage for American autoworkers has decreased by 30% after adjusting for inflation.
And let me tell you something else. I am getting a little sick and tired of hearing the corporate media tell us how bad a strike will be for the economy and how many billions of dollars the auto industry may lose as a result.
When you have auto workers who cannot afford to buy the cars they make on the assembly line, that is bad for the economy.
When you have auto workers who cannot afford to take out a mortgage to buy a modest home while the companies they work for make record breaking profits, that is bad for the economy.
When you have auto workers who can’t afford childcare or to send their kids to college, that’s bad for the economy.
No, brothers and sisters, what the UAW is fighting for is not radical.
It is the totally reasonable demand that autoworkers finally receive a fair share of the record-breaking profits that their labor has produced.
The CEOs of General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis and their major stockholders on Wall Street have got to understand that they cannot have it all.
It means that if the Big Three can afford to spend $9 billion on stock buybacks and dividends last year, they can afford to provide a decent COLA to autoworkers so that their wages keep pace with inflation.
And let’s be clear. While decent wages are a key demand for the UAW, there are other important contract changes that the union has proposed.
It means that the time is long overdue to get rid of the disastrous two-tier system under which newer workers earn lower wages and receive less generous benefits than others doing the same exact work.
It means finally ending the use of “temporary workers” who are ruthlessly exploited and treated like second-class citizens.
It means that all autoworkers receive a decent pension plan so they’re able to retire with security.
It means that workers should have the right to strike when an auto company announces that they will be shutting down another profitable plant in the United States of America.
And that’s not all.
It means that as we combat climate change and try to save this planet for our kids and future generations, that when the auto industry builds new electric vehicle and battery plants that the workers in those plants become part of the UAW and receive the same wages and benefits as union members.
Brothers and Sisters: The CEOs of General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis and their major stockholders on Wall Street have got to understand that they cannot have it all.
We refuse to live in an oligarchy. We refuse to accept a society in which so few have so much and so many have so little.
Enough is enough!
Let us stand together to end to corporate greed.
Let us stand together to rebuild the disappearing middle class.
Let us create an economy that works for all of us, not just the top 1%.
Let us all stand in solidarity with the UAW.
Thank you all very much.
Attorney General Josh Kaul accused the world's richest person and top Trump adviser of "a blatant attempt to violate" Wisconsin's election bribery law.
Democratic Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul filed a lawsuit Friday seeking to stop Elon Musk—the world's richest person and a senior adviser to President Donald Trump—from handing out $1 million checks to voters this weekend in an apparent blatant violation of bribery law meant to swing next Tuesday's crucial state Supreme Court election.
"Wisconsin law forbids anyone from offering or promising to give anything of value to an elector in order to induce the elector to go to the polls, vote or refrain from voting, or vote for a particular person," the lawsuit notes. "Musk's announcement of his intention to pay $1 million to two Wisconsin electors who attend his event on Sunday night, specifically conditioned on their having voted in the upcoming April 3, 2025, Wisconsin Supreme Court election, is a blatant attempt to violate Wis. Stat. § 12.11. This must not happen."
On Thursday, Musk announced on his X social media site that he will "give a talk" at an undisclosed location in Wisconsin, and that "entrance is limited to those who have signed the petition in opposition to activist judges."
"I will also hand over checks for a million dollars to two people to be spokesmen for the petition," the Tesla and SpaceX CEO and de facto head of the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency wrote.
As Common Dreams reported earlier last week, Musk's super political action committee, America PAC, is offering registered Wisconsin voters $100 to sign a petition stating that they reject "the actions of activist judges who impose their own views" and demand "a judiciary that respects its role—interpreting, not legislating."
The cash awards—which critics have decried as bribery—are part of a multimillion dollar effort by Musk and affiliated super PACs to boost Judge Brad Schimel of Waukesha County, the Trump-backed, right-wing state Supreme Court candidate locked in a tight race with Dane County Judge Susan Crawford.
Left-leaning justices are clinging to a 4-3 advantage on the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Crawford and Schimel are vying to fill the seat now occupied by Justice Ann Walsh Bradley, a liberal who is not running for another 10-year term. Control of the state's highest court will likely impact a wide range of issues, from abortion to labor rights to voter suppression.
Musk has openly admitted why he's spending millions of dollars on the race: It "will decide how congressional districts are drawn." That's what he said while hosting Schimel and U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) for a discussion on X last weekend.
"In my opinion that's the most important thing, which is a big deal given that the congressional majority is so razor-thin," Musk argued. "It could cause the House to switch to Democrat if that redrawing takes place."
Crawford campaign spokesperson Derrick Honeyman issued a statement Friday calling Musk's planned cash giveaway a "last-minute desperate distraction."
"Wisconsinites don't want a billionaire like Musk telling them who to vote for," Honeyman added, "and on Tuesday, voters should reject Musk's lackey Brad Schimel."
Greenlanders are giving the administration of President Donald Trump—who renewed threats to take the Danish territory—the cold shoulder.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance, Second Lady Usha Vance, and two top Trump administration officials traveled to Greenland on Friday on an itinerary that was markedly curtailed from its original plans due to Greenlanders' frosty reception amid President Donald Trump's ongoing threats to take the Arctic island from NATO ally Denmark—even by armed force if deemed necessary.
Vance visited Pituffik Space Base—a U.S. Space Force installation on the northwestern coast of Greenland about 930 miles (1,500 km) north of the capital, Nuuk—with his wife, National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, and Energy Secretary Chris Wright.
The vice president's wife originally planned on a more interactive and cultural itinerary, including attending a dogsled race. However, Greenland's leftist government said earlier this week that is had "not extended any invitations for any visits, neither private nor official."
Compounding the Trump administration's embarrassment, U.S. representatives reportedly came up empty handed after canvassing door to door in Nuuk in an effort to drum up support for the visit. The administration denies this ever happened.
And so the Trump officials' audience was limited to U.S. troops stationed at Pituffik. After arriving at the base, the vice president told troops in the mess hall he was surprised to find the snow- and ice-covered Arctic island is "cold as shit."
"Nobody told me!" he added.
Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance visited a U.S. Space Force base in Greenland Friday. Vance is expected to receive briefings on Arctic security and address US service members.
Read more: https://t.co/1OIkkT3VnD pic.twitter.com/lbXeObJTgq
— Newsweek (@Newsweek) March 28, 2025
Getting down to more serious business, Vance said: "Our message to Denmark is very simple—you have not done a good job by the people of Greenland. You have under-invested in the people of Greenland and you have under-invested in the security architecture of this incredible, beautiful land mass."
Addressing Arctic geopolitics, Vance argued that "we can't just bury our head in the sand—or in Greenland, bury our head in the snow—and pretend that the Chinese are not interested in this very large land mass. We know that they are."
"The president said we have to have Greenland, and I think that we do have to be more serious about the security of Greenland," Vance continued. "We respect the self-determination of the people of Greenland, but my argument to them is: I think that you'd be a lot better coming under the United States' security umbrella than you have been under Denmark's security umbrella. Because what Denmark's security umbrella has meant is effectively they've passed it all off to brave Americans and hoped that we would pick up the tab."
This follows remarks earlier this week from Vance, who said during a Fox News interview that Denmark, which faithfully sent troops to fight in both Afghanistan and Iraq—43 of whom died, the highest per capita casualty rate of the alliance—is "not being a good ally" to the United States.
Asked by reporters on Friday if the U.S. would ever conquer Greenland by military force, Vance said he didn't think that would be necessary.
However, just a day earlier, Trump—who on Friday posted a video highlighting defense cooperation between the U.S. and Greenland—said his administration will "go as far as we have to go" to acquire the island, which he claimed the United States needs "for national security and international security."
It was far from the first time that Trump—who has also threatened to take over parts or all of countries including Panama and even Canada—vowed to annex Greenland, and other administration officials have repeated the president's threats.
"It's oil and gas. It's our national security. It's critical minerals," Waltz said in January, explaining why Trump wants Greenland.
The U.S. has long been interested in Greenland, and while the close relationship between the United States and Denmark has been mostly mutually beneficial, it has sometimes come at the expense of Greenland's people, environment, and wildlife.
Such was the case when a U.S. Air Force B-52 bomber laden with four thermonuclear warheads crashed into the sea ice of Wolstenholme Fjord in 1968. The accident caused widespread radioactive contamination, and the nuclear fuel components of one of the bombs remain unrecovered to this day.
Elected officials from across Greenland and Denmark's political spectrum expressed alarm over the Trump administration's actions.
Outgoing Greenland Prime Minister Múte Bourup Egede earlier this week
called Vance's trip "highly aggressive" and said that it "can in no way be characterized as a harmless visit."
"Because what is the security advisor doing in Greenland?" Egede asked. "The only purpose is to show a demonstration of power to us, and the signal is not to be misunderstood."
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke called Vance's remarks on Friday "a bit inappropriate," adding that maybe the Trump administration "should look at yourself in the mirror too."
"When the vice president.. creates an image that the only way Greenland can be protected is by coming under the American umbrella, so you can say that Greenland is already there," Løkke elaborated. "They are part of the common security umbrella that we created together with the Americans after the end of World War II called NATO."
"We have always looked at America like the nice big brother to help you out and now it's like the big brother is bullying you."
Ordinary Greenlanders and Danish residents of the island were not happy about the Trump delegation's visit.
Anders Laursen, who owns a local water taxi company, told NBC News that "we have always looked at America like the nice big brother to help you out and now it's like the big brother is bullying you."
Nuuk resident Marie Olsen said of Vance, "I think he's a big child who wants it all."
In the Danish capital Copenhagen, hundreds of people rallied Friday against the U.S. delegation's visit to Greenland. One protester decried what she called the U.S. administration's "mafia methods."
"I hope American law firms—Paul Weiss and Skadden—are proud of the cowardice they are instilling and inspiring among the legal profession," wrote one former state senator.
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom on Friday became the latest white-shoe law firm to acquiesce to the Trump administration as the White House ramps up attacks on the legal profession. The news prompted a wave of outrage at the law firm, which was accused of being "pathetic."
The firm has agreed to provide at least $100 million in pro bono legal services to the federal government during his administration "and beyond," according to a Truth Social post from U.S. President Donald Trump. Also, the "firm will not engage in illegal" diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) "discrimination and preferences," according to the post, which also noted that the firm proactively reached out to the administration about an agreement.
Speaking at the White House on Friday, Trump called the deal "essentially a settlement," according to Reuters.
"Pathetic when the richest and most powerful lawyers in America won't stand up for the profession that made them rich and powerful," wrote U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) on X on Friday, reacting to earlier reporting that the firm was in discussions with the White House over a deal.
Author and commentator Wajahat Ali wrote that the move was "shameful" on Bluesky on Friday. "Pathetic and selfish," wrote Pod Save America podcast co-host Jon Favreau.
Former New York state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi (D-34) wrote: "I hope American law firms—Paul Weiss and Skadden—are proud of the cowardice they are instilling and inspiring among the legal profession."
The news comes on the heels of news that another top law firm, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP, last week brokered a deal with the White House in order to spare the firm from an executive order that suspended security clearances for lawyers and staff.
As part of that deal, the firm will dedicate $40 million in pro bono legal services during Trump's administration "to support the administration's initiatives."
Meanwhile, also last week, Trump issued a memo directing U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to "seek sanctions" against firms and lawyers that, according to him, "engage in frivolous, unreasonable, and vexatious litigation against the United States."
With the agreement, Skadden Arps has likely avoided joining a list of elite law firms that have been singled out via executive order from Trump, targeting them with various punishments. Three of the firms that have been targeted with an executive order, WilmerHale, Jenner & Block, and Perkins Coie, have sued the Trump administration in response.
Last week, prior to the deal between Skadden Arps and the Trump administration and in response to the deal struck between the White House and Paul Weiss, an associate at Skadden Arps sent an all-staff email saying she would resign if the firm did not do more to stand up to Trump.
"This is not what I saw for my career or for my evening, but Paul Weiss' decision to cave to the Trump administration on DEI, representation, and staffing has forced my hand," she wrote. "We do not have time. It is either now or never, and if it's never, I will not continue to work here."