Politics and views in the United States.

Trump backs off tariffs and threats of invasion with a new framework for a deal on Greenland. A Report finds pros and cons in the US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement and ICE's tactics draw academic interest.

TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to 2026 Talks, where we're following our democracy in historic times.

No nation or group of nations is in any position to be able to secure Greenland other than the United States.

We're a great power, much greater than people even understand.

I think they found that out two weeks ago in Venezuela.

President Donald Trump announced he'd reached a framework for a deal with NATO regarding Greenland and backed away from threats of terrorists on European allies.

He has also said the U.S. would not use military force.

The White House has announced few framework details and world leaders say they remain leery.

In a World Economic Forum speech, Trump insisted the Danish territory, which he mistakenly called Iceland, is still vital to U.S. national security.

Stock markets rose on news of proposed tariffs not going into effect.

Polls show U.S. voters oppose taking Greenland by three to one or more.

The president also brought his 2020 election fraud claims to the international stage, saying, quote, "People will soon be prosecuted for what they did.

The Department of Justice is seeking to force Fulton County, Georgia, to turn over 2020 election ballots, and about a quarter of Americans have said they feel the election was stolen.

But numerous legal cases alleging fraud have failed, and critics say Trump's comments now are another example of him seeking retribution against his opponents.

Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney says the economic upheaval caused by the Trump administration signals a rupture in the "rules-based order."

“Great powers have begun using economic integration as weapons, as leverage.

Financial infrastructure is coercion.

Supply chains as vulnerabilities to be exploited."

Carney has responded to the trade conflicts by working to move Canada's economy from being as reliant on the U.S.

Ottawa has signed a deal with China to slash import duties on electric vehicles, contradicting Washington's trade stance.

This comes as the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement comes up for review this year.

Trump has often called it a "terrible deal" in spite of his signing it during his first term.

A new report from the union-friendly Economic Policy Institute supports that view, saying the U.S. trade deficit with the two countries reached more than a quarter trillion dollars in 2025, up from 125 billion in 2020.

Report author and economist Adam Hirsch says the agreement needs to be rebalanced and not in a way some would assume.

It's not about rebalancing it between the US and Canada or the US and Mexico.

It's about rebalancing it between the power of big corporations that has been written into these rules and what's good for regular people.

Controversial ICE arrests often captured on cell phone recordings and sparking responses from concerned neighbors are now drawing study by social scientists.

Republicans who back the operation say community resistance is what's inflaming conflicts and making the situation more dangerous.

But Minneapolis sociologist Nicole Badara says research shows the opposite is actually true. - The reality is things like Ice Watch and mutual aid are de-escalation tactics, that they are ways of reducing violence.

And then even though they do come with some risk, those risks are minimal in comparison to the risk of doing nothing.

I'm Edwin J. Viera for Pacifica Network and Public News Service.

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