The Trump administration is considering paying each Greenland resident thousands of dollars as part of a bid to encourage the territory to secede from Denmark and join the United States, according to Reuters. 

U.S. officials, including White House aides, have discussed payment figures ranging from $10,000 to $100,000, the outlet reported, citing sources. 

For an island with a population of roughly 57,000, the total cost could range from more than half a billion dollars to nearly $6 billion.

While discussions of a lump-sum payment are not new, Reuters reported that officials have become more serious in recent days and are considering higher amounts.

The White House referred Fox News Digital on Thursday to remarks by Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, who said during a Wednesday briefing that buying Greenland would benefit U.S. national security.

‘The acquisition of Greenland by the United States is not a new idea,’ Leavitt said. 

‘The president has been very open and clear with all of you and the world that he views it as in the best interest of the United States to deter Russian and Chinese aggression in the Arctic region,’ she said. ‘That’s why his team is currently talking about what a potential purchase would look like.’

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that he plans to meet with his Danish counterpart next week to discuss Greenland.

Trump has long contended that the U.S. should acquire Greenland, arguing that its mineral resources are vital in advancing U.S. military technologies and that the Western Hemisphere should broadly fall under Washington’s geopolitical influence.

On Sunday, Trump told reporters Greenland is surrounded by Russian and Chinese ships and that Denmark, which governs Greenland, lacks the capability to provide the level of defense and oversight that meets U.S. national security standards.

‘It’s so strategic,’ Trump told reporters on Air Force One. ‘We need Greenland from the standpoint of national security, and Denmark is not going to be able to do it.’

Authorities in Greenland and Denmark insist that Greenland is not for sale, and European leaders have criticized the proposal, arguing that it undermines trust between the U.S. and Denmark as NATO allies. Under the NATO defense agreement, allies are obliged to support one another militarily if attacked, making the idea of a sale particularly sensitive.

‘This is enough,’ Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen wrote in a Facebook post on Sunday, responding to Trump’s Sunday remarks about acquiring the island. ‘No more pressure. No more hints. No more fantasies about annexation.’

On Tuesday, Nielsen added that Greenland will remain part of Denmark despite U.S. efforts.

‘Our country isn’t something you can deny or take over because you want to,’ he added. ‘Once again, I urge the United States to seek respectful dialogue through the correct diplomatic and political channels and utilizing pre-existing forums that are based on agreements already in place with the United States. The dialogue must take place with respect to the fact that Greenland’s status is rooted in international law and the principle of territorial integrity.’ 

President Donald Trump called for defense spending to be raised to $1.5 trillion, a 50% increase over the current budget. 

‘After long and difficult negotiations with Senators, Congressmen, Secretaries, and other Political Representatives, I have determined that, for the Good of our Country, especially in these very troubled and dangerous times, our Military Budget for the year 2027 should not be $1 Trillion Dollars, but rather $1.5 Trillion Dollars,’ Trump wrote on Truth Social Thursday evening. 

‘This will allow us to build the ‘Dream Military’ that we have long been entitled to and, more importantly, that will keep us SAFE and SECURE, regardless of foe.’ 

The president said he came up with the number after tariff revenues created a surplus of cash. He claimed the levies were bringing in enough money to pay for both a major boost to the defense budget ‘easily,’ pay down the national debt, which is more than $38 trillion, and offer ‘a substantial dividend to moderate income patriots.’

The boost likely reflects efforts to fund Trump’s ambitious military plans, from the Golden Dome homeland missile defense shield to a new ‘Trump class’ of battleships.

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget found that the increased budget would cost about $5 trillion from 2027 to 2035, or $5.7 trillion with interest. Tariff revenues, the group found, would cover about half the cost — $2.5 trillion, or $3 trillion with interest. 

The Supreme Court is expected to rule in a major case Friday that will determine the legality of Trump’s sweeping tariff strategy.

In 2026, the defense budget is expected to breach $1 trillion for the first time thanks to a $150 billion reconciliation bill Congress passed to boost the expected $900 billion defense spending legislation for fiscal year 2026. Congress has yet to pass a full-year defense budget for 2026.

Some Republicans have long called for a major increase to defense spending to bring the topline total to 5% of GDP, as the $1.5 trillion budget would do, up from the current 3.5%.

Trump has ramped up pressure on Europe to increase its national security spending to 5% of GDP — 3.5% on core military requirements and 1.5% on defense-related areas like cybersecurity and critical infrastructure.

Trump’s budget announcement came hours after defense stocks took a dip when he condemned the performance rates of major defense contractors. In a separate Truth Social post, he announced he would not allow defense firms to buy back their own stocks, offer large salaries to executives or issue dividends to shareholders. 

‘Executive Pay Packages in the Defense Industry are exorbitant and unjustifiable given how slowly these Companies are delivering vital Equipment to our Military, and our Allies,’ he said. 

‘​Defense Companies are not producing our Great Military Equipment rapidly enough and, once produced, not maintaining it properly or quickly.’

He said that executives would not be allowed to make above $5 million until they build new production plants.

Stock buybacks, dividends and executive compensation generally are governed by securities law, state corporate law and private contracts, and cannot be broadly restricted without congressional action.

An executive order the White House released Wednesday frames the restrictions as conditions on future defense contracts, rather than a blanket prohibition. The order directs the secretary of war to ensure that new contracts include provisions barring stock buybacks and corporate distributions during periods of underperformance, non-compliance or inadequate production, as determined by the Pentagon.

President Donald Trump unleashed his fury on a handful of Senate Republicans who rebelled against him on Thursday, demanding that they never be re-elected. 

Five Senate Republicans broke ranks to support a bipartisan war powers resolution from Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., geared toward reining in Trump’s ability to pursue further military action in Venezuela. 

It served as a rare rebuke from Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, Todd Young, R-Ind., Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, Josh Hawley, R-Mo., and Rand Paul, R-Ky., in a Republican-controlled Senate that has largely accepted and advanced many of Trump’s legislative desires. 

Trump was not happy about it. 

‘Republicans should be ashamed of the Senators that just voted with Democrats in attempting to take away our Powers to fight and defend the United States of America,’ Trump wrote on Truth Social. 

‘Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Rand Paul, Josh Hawley, and Todd Young should never be elected to office again,’ he continued. ‘This Vote greatly hampers American Self Defense and National Security, impeding the President’s Authority as Commander in Chief.’ 

Collins, in particular, faces a tough re-election challenge in Maine, where Senate Democrats got their prized candidate, Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, to jump into the race late last year. 

The Republicans that voted for the resolution argued that while they supported Operation Absolute Resolve, the code name of the mission carried out to capture former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, they wanted Congress to have a say should any further military action take place. 

That decision came in part after lawmakers received briefings throughout the week from top administration officials to explain what the next steps in the country would be. 

‘With Maduro rightfully captured, the circumstances have now changed,’ Collins said in a statement ahead of the vote. ‘While I support the operation to seize Nicolás Maduro, which was extraordinary in its precision and complexity, I do not support committing additional U.S. forces or entering into any long-term military involvement in Venezuela or Greenland without specific congressional authorization.’

Trump rejected Congress’ war powers authority, calling the War Powers Act ‘unconstitutional, totally violating Article II of the Constitution, as all Presidents, and their Departments of Justice, have determined before me.’

‘Nevertheless, a more important Senate Vote will be taking place next week on this very subject,’ he said. 

The House of Representatives has passed a federal funding package totaling nearly $180 billion, putting Congress one modest step closer to averting a government shutdown at the end of this month.

The legislation accounts for just over $174 billion aimed at partially or fully funding the departments of Commerce, Justice, Interior and Energy, including laying out the budget for NASA, the FBI and federal nuclear energy projects.

Republicans and Democrats overwhelmingly supported the final package of three bills, which passed by a 397-28 vote. Twenty-two Republicans and six Democrats voted against the bill.

It comes after the bills ran into opposition from conservative Republicans on Wednesday.

Members of the House Freedom Caucus and others on the GOP’s right flank were incensed in particular by the Commerce-Justice-Science (CJS) appropriations bill, which they felt rank-and-file lawmakers did not get proper input on putting together.

It’s one of 12 annual appropriations bills that Congress is tasked with passing each fiscal year. Congressional leaders who negotiated the legislation along bipartisan lines originally included it in a three-bill ‘minibus’ that, when passed in the House and Senate, would mean half of those dozen bills are finished.

Conservatives also threatened to kill the bill during a procedural vote on Wednesday afternoon over the inclusion of a community funding project requested by ‘Squad’ member Ilhan Omar, D-Minn.

The bill would have given $1,031,000 to Generation Hope’s Justice Empowerment Initiative, which ‘helps justice-involved Minneapolis residents break the cycle through job training and support,’ according to a description of the funding request.

But conservatives argued that the funding was just another vehicle allowing Minnesota’s Somali community to fraudulently take taxpayer funds at a time when the state is grappling with a massive fraud scandal enveloping its public service programs.

‘Fraud is running RAMPANT in Minnesota under the failed leadership of Tim Walz. Democrats want to use earmarks to funnel another $1 MILLION to a Somali-led so-called ‘Justice Empowerment Initiative’ that ABUSES taxpayer dollars,’ Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., said on X.

Community project funding, also known as an ‘earmark,’ is a request that specific lawmakers make that allows their districts to directly benefit from Congress’ federal funding bills.

‘Earmarks, the currency of corruption, they’re coming back in full force in these products. And I just don’t support it,’ Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, told reporters Wednesday morning.

He was among the conservatives who Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., negotiated with on the House floor for nearly half an hour as the minibus was in danger of failing during a procedural vote to allow for it to be debated.

In the end, House GOP leaders agreed to hold a separate vote on the CJS spending bill while also removing Omar’s earmark, which was also supported by Minnesota’s two Democrat senators.

‘Chalk one up for the good guys. Proud to work the last two days to stop the outrageous Ilhan Omar $1 million Somali earmark. Much more to do,’ Roy posted on X.

The CJS bill was first voted on, followed by the remaining two as a pair, and then a final vote on combining them before sending them to the Senate.

House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris, R-Md., told Fox News Digital he still anticipated ‘a number of’ his members will still vote against that bill specifically.

The legislation passed along bipartisan lines Thursday, with top House Appropriations Committee Democrat Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., celebrating that the bill was free of GOP ‘poison pills’ earlier this week.

Its funding levels are above what was originally requested by President Donald Trump but below the threshold extending former President Joe Biden’s fiscal year 2024 spending levels via another continuing resolution would have brought.

The White House has also issued a statement of support for the minibus, which will be combined back into one bill before being sent to the Senate.

Congress has until the end of Jan. 30 to find a solution on the remaining six appropriations bills to avert another shutdown.

Dozens of House Republicans voted alongside Democrats on Thursday in a failed attempt to override the first — and so far, only — vetoes of President Donald Trump’s second term.

Trump has only issued two vetoes thus far since taking office in January 2025.

Both veto override efforts failed, but it’s significant that more than 20 Republicans voted to defy Trump’s wishes on each measure.

It’s a rare rebuke of Trump’s actions while in office, particularly notable since Republicans control both chambers of Congress as well.

One of the bills was the ‘Finish the Arkansas Valley Conduit Act,’ led by Trump ally Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo.

Thirty-five Republicans joined all 213 Democrats to override Trump’s veto of that legislation, but it failed to reach the two-thirds majority necessary to do so.

Boebert’s bill was aimed at expanding the availability of fresh water in eastern Colorado, where Boebert’s district is located.

In a statement to the House of Representatives last month, Trump called the project ‘economically unviable’ and said his administration was ‘committed to preventing American taxpayers from funding expensive and unreliable’ initiatives.

Trump also called Democrat state Gov. Jared Polis a ‘bad’ leader in an interview with Politico last month explaining the veto.

‘This isn’t over,’ Boebert, a staunch ally of the president, posted on X in response to Trump’s decision.

She also insinuated in a statement to local outlets that the move could have been in response to her support for releasing the federal government’s files on Jeffrey Epstein, writing in part, ‘I sincerely hope this veto has nothing to do with political retaliation for calling out corruption and demanding accountability.’

The second bill Trump vetoed is the ‘Miccosukee Reserved Area Amendments Act,’ similarly led by Trump allies in his new home state of Florida.

Twenty-four Republicans joined 212 Democrats in voting to override that veto, but like the first bill, it did not clinch the two-thirds majority necessary to succeed.

That legislation was aimed at formally expanding the territory of the Miccosukee Native American tribe, who primarily reside in the Florida Everglades.

But in his veto explanation, Trump accused the tribe of having ‘actively sought to obstruct reasonable immigration policies that the American people decisively voted for when I was elected.’

‘My Administration is committed to preventing American taxpayers from funding projects for special interests, especially those that are unaligned with my Administration’s policy of removing violent criminal illegal aliens from the country. Ending the massive cost of taxpayer handouts and restoring fiscal sanity is vital to economic growth and the fiscal health of the Nation,’ his statement read.

But Trump’s allies struck a different chord, responding to this veto, with Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., telling Punchbowl News that the Senate should ‘address Trump’s concerns’ with the legislation.

European allies are working together on a plan in case the Trump administration acts on acquiring Greenland, a report said Wednesday. 

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told France Inter radio that the subject will be raised at a meeting with the foreign ministers of Germany and Poland. 

‘We want to take action, but we want to do so together with our European partners,’ Barrot said, according to Reuters.

A German government source also told Reuters that Germany is ‘closely working together with other European countries and Denmark on the next steps regarding Greenland.’

The White House said on Tuesday that President Donald Trump views acquiring Greenland as a national security priority and that the use of the U.S. military remains an option as his administration weighs how to pursue control of the Arctic territory.

‘President Trump has made it well known that acquiring Greenland is a national security priority of the United States,’ White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement to Fox News.  

‘The President and his team are discussing a range of options to pursue this important foreign policy goal, and of course, utilizing the U.S. Military is always an option at the Commander in Chief’s disposal,’ she added. 

When asked Wednesday for a response to the Reuters report, the White House referred Fox News Digital to Leavitt’s remarks.

Trump told reporters on Air Force One over the weekend that the U.S. needs Greenland, a Danish territory, for ‘national security.’ 

European and Nordic leaders pushed back against the comments, with Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Denmark’s Ambassador to the United States Jesper Møller Sørensen underscoring their support for Denmark’s sovereignty over Greenland and stressing that its future must be determined by Greenland and Denmark alone.

A senior European official told Reuters on Wednesday that Denmark must lead any effort to coordinate a response and ‘the Danes have yet to communicate to their European allies what kind of concrete support they wish to receive.’ 

Fox News Digital’s Jasmine Baehr and Ashley Carnahan contributed to this report. 

The House of Representatives passed a bill to revive and extend COVID-19 pandemic-era enhanced Obamacare subsidies in a major victory for Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.

Seventeen House Republicans broke ranks with GOP leaders to support the legislation after Democrats were successful in forcing a vote via a mechanism called a privileged resolution. The bill passed 230-196.

A discharge petition is a mechanism for getting legislation considered on the House floor even if the majority’s leadership is opposed to it, provided the petition gets a majority of House lawmakers’ signatures.

Jeffries filed a discharge petition late last year, which was then signed by four House Republicans — helping it clinch the critical majority threshold.

Five more House Republicans joined Democrats in a vote Wednesday evening to advance the legislation for final consideration Thursday.

The 17 Republicans who voted for the legislation were Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa.; Mike Lawler, R-N.Y.; Rob Bresnahan, R-Pa.; Ryan Mackenzie, R-Pa.; Mike Carey, R-Ohio; Monica De La Cruz, R-Texas; Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y.; Will Hurd, R-Colo.; Dave Joyce, R-Ohio; Tom Kean Jr., R-N.J., Nick LaLota, R-N.Y., Max Miller, R-Ohio; Zach Nunn, R-Iowa; Maria Salazar, R-Fla.; Dave Valadao, R-Calif.; Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis.; and Rob Wittman, R-Va.

It underscores the perilously slim margins Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is governing with.

House Republicans hold just a two-vote majority with full attendance on both sides, numbers that could easily shift when lawmakers are absent for personal or health reasons.

As Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., put to reporters on Wednesday morning, ‘We are one flu season away from losing the majority.’

The successful vote on Thursday is a blow for Johnson, who argued for weeks that the majority of House Republicans were opposed to extending the COVID-19 pandemic-era tax subsidies.

But a significant number of GOP moderates were frustrated that their party leaders in the House and Senate had done little to avert a price hike for millions of Americans’ insurance premiums. 

A Democrat-controlled Congress voted twice, in 2020 and in 2021, to enhance Obamacare subsidies to give more people access to federal healthcare during the pandemic.

Those subsidies were only extended through 2025, however.

The vast majority of Republicans believe the subsidies are a COVID-era relic of a long-broken federal healthcare system. Conservatives argued that the relatively small percentage of Americans who rely on Obamacare meant that an extension would do little to ease rising health costs that people across the country are experiencing.

But a core group of moderates has been arguing that a failure to extend a reformed version of them would force millions of Americans to grapple with skyrocketing healthcare costs this year.

Those moderates were also frustrated with Jeffries for not working with Republicans on a bipartisan solution to the subsidies but felt they were left with little choice but to support Democrats’ bid in the end.

House Republicans passed a healthcare bill in mid-December aimed at lowering those costs for a broader swath of Americans, but that legislation has not been taken up in the Senate.

There’s also little chance the three-year extension will pass the upper chamber, however. Similar legislation led by Senate Democrats failed to reach the necessary 60-vote threshold to advance in December.

President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he plans to meet with Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado in Washington next week.

During an appearance on Fox News’ ‘Hannity,’ Trump was asked if he intends to meet with Machado after the U.S. struck Venezuela and captured its president, Nicolás Maduro.

‘Well, I understand she’s coming in next week sometime, and I look forward to saying hello to her,’ Trump said.

This will be Trump’s first meeting with Machado, who the U.S. president stated ‘doesn’t have the support within or the respect within the country’ to lead.

According to reports, Trump’s refusal to support Machado was linked to her accepting the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, which Trump believed he deserved.

But Trump later told NBC News that while he believed Machado should not have won the award, her acceptance of the prize had ‘nothing to do with my decision’ about the prospect of her leading Venezuela.