Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent defended proposed tariffs targeting eight European countries that oppose President Donald Trump’s push to acquire Greenland, telling NBC News’ “Meet the Press” that the goal is to avoid a future “national emergency.”
Trump said he would impose the new 10% tariff on Denmark Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Finland, with the duties increasing to 25% if a deal is not reached for the U.S. to purchase the territory by June 1.
European Council President António Costa said he would convene “an extraordinary meeting of the European Council in the coming days.”
The tariff announcement was the most recent escalation in tensions between the U.S. and some of its closest allies. Any direct confrontation would threaten to undo 70 years of security and stability in the Atlantic under the NATO alliance.
But Trump’s latest push drew signs of fatigue and impatience from European leaders, who have long been reluctant to confront the president directly. They appear newly united in defending Denmark’s territory and pushing back against what they see as an unacceptable escalation.
More on Greenland:
- ‘Make America Go Away’: An estimated 10,000 Danes gathered at a Copenhagen demonstration Saturday afternoon to express their frustration with Trump’s push for Greenland.
- Go north? It isn’t just Greenland: Trump is privately ramping up his focus on another target in the Western Hemisphere, increasingly complaining to aides in recent weeks about Canada’s vulnerability to U.S. adversaries in the Arctic, according to officials familiar with the discussions.
- A tempting target: The global AI race makes Greenland’s rare earth minerals enticing, but experts say they may not be worth the trouble of mining.
Federal officials investigating Renee Good’s partner after ICE shooting, sources say
Federal officials are investigating the partner of Renee Nicole Good to determine whether she may have impeded a federal officer moments before he shot and killed Good in Minneapolis, according to two people familiar with the investigation who spoke to NBC News.
The federal investigation into the shooting by ICE officer Jonathan Ross is focusing more on Becca Good, including what officials said were her possible ties to activist groups, and less on Ross’ actions when he fired into Renee Good’s vehicle during an immigration operation last week, the people said.
The fatal encounter has touched off protests in Minneapolis and calls for accountability for immigration officers, whose tactics have resulted in at least 10 other shootings since September.
More on Minneapolis:
- Demonstrations in the city: A right-wing provocateur who was pardoned for charges tied to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol says he was stabbed during a pro-ICE rally outside Minneapolis City Hall on Saturday.
- Insurrection Act threats: Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” that it “would be a shocking step” if Trump were to deploy the military to his state under the Insurrection Act.
- Parent patrol: Parents are using walkie-talkies, Signal group chats and whistles to alert the community to ICE’s presence near schools in the city.
- 2026 scramble: Republicans, who haven’t won a statewide race in Minnesota in two decades, see a moment to break through. But there are still many factors stacked against them.
Politics in brief
- Strikes in Syria: The U.S. military says it killed an Al Qaeda affiliate leader linked to an ISIS shooter who killed Americans in Syria last month.
- Labor Department probe: Multiple Labor Department staffers have been placed on leave pending an internal investigation into allegations of misconduct by Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, sources told NBC News.
- ‘RUN, JULIA, RUN!’: Trump endorsed Louisiana Rep. Julia Letlow to primary Sen. Bill Cassidy for his U.S. Senate seat.
- Wrong pardon: The president’s pardon of former Puerto Rico Gov. Wanda Vázquez Garced did not include all of the criminal cases she’s faced, and the White House said it is planning to make a fix.
A viral question for young Chinese people living alone: ‘Are you dead?’
One of the most popular new apps in China poses an awkward question: “Are you dead?”
An app by that name has gone viral as a digital “check-in” aimed mainly at the growing number of young people living alone in China’s sprawling cities. The idea is to designate an emergency contact person, who will be alerted if a user goes a few days without confirming their well-being on the app.
“I personally lived alone in Shenzhen for a long time, so I understand the various problems one faces when living solo,” one of the app’s founders told NBC News. The sense of loneliness and insecurity “is constant,” he added.
Broncos quarterback Bo Nix breaks ankle during team’s win over the Bills
Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix’s season is done after he broke a bone in his right ankle late in his team’s 33-30 overtime win against the Buffalo Bills. Jarrett Stidham will now start for Denver, the top seed in the AFC, in the conference championship game next weekend.
“It’s extremely difficult. I feel like I let my teammates down tonight,” Bills quarterback Josh Allen said after the game, wiping away tears.
The win was a statement effort in what was only Nix’s second career postseason start. For Allen, the loss adds to a string of devastating defeats for a franchise that’s become synonymous with postseason heartbreak. Buffalo has now failed to make it back to the championship round for the seventh straight season of Allen’s tenure.
Around the NFL:
- Seahawks 41, 49ers 6: Seattle crushed its division rival, easily winning to advance to the NFC championship game for the first time since 2014.
Notable quote
If Iran goes down the revolution path, it’s going to be the sort of Syria-fication of the country, and that will be very bloody.
Ellie Geranmayeh, a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations
Whether by overthrow or old age, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will soon need a replacement, and this latest nationwide eruption has only drawn the question of the 86-year-old’s successor into sharper focus.
In case you missed it
- Two separate storm systems stretched across the country, placing roughly 55 million people under winter alerts from the northern Plains and Great Lakes through the Northeast and into parts of the Southeast.
- Kianna Underwood, who appeared on Nickelodeon’s “All That” as a child, was killed in a hit-and-run incident in New York City, police said. She was 33.
- NASA rolled out a 322-foot-tall rocket Saturday, a key step as the agency prepares for a long-awaited mission to send four astronauts around the moon.
- Egypt welcomed Trump’s offer to settle a dispute with Ethiopia over Nile River waters, as the two African nations continue their decadeslong quarrel over water security.
- A man who drove while intoxicated into a crowd of people celebrating the Fourth of July, killing four, has been sentenced to 24 years to life in state prison, Manhattan’s top prosecutor announced.
- Wildfires raging across central and southern Chile left at least 15 people dead, scorched thousands of acres of forest and destroyed scores of homes, authorities said.
- Venus Williams, 45, became the oldest woman to compete in an Australian Open singles main draw in her first-round loss to Olga Danilovic.