Greenland, Denmark to Put Up United Front at the White House

0:02A big day for Greenland diplomacy as officials from the island and Denmark arrive in Washington. Plus, the U.S. unveils its governance plans for Gaza and one actor's novel approach to tackling AI fakes. Matthew McConaughey's lawyers are betting that if there's a trademark that covers anything that looks or sounds like Matthew McConaughey, then they can put a stop to it. It's Wednesday, January 14th. I'm Luke Vargas for The Wall Street Journal, and here is the AM edition of What's News, the top headlines and business stories moving your world today. The leader of Greenland says the island would choose to remain a Danish territory instead of joining the U.S.

0:43ahead of meetings at the White House today. Those remarks come as officials from Greenland and Denmark seek to portray unity in the face of President Trump's push to seize the semi-autonomous territory that's three times the size of Texas. So what response will they get in Washington today? Journal correspondent Max Colchester has been tracking events for us. Max, what is the negotiating position coming into today from Greenlandic and Danish officials? Are they giving any ground? Well, it seems that they've taken quite a clear stance. Previously, Greenland has really just stated that it wants to move towards independence and that it wants to choose its own fate and that it's not for sale.

1:21Now it's saying actually it wants to maintain the status quo. It wants to be part of Denmark as opposed to siding with the US. So it sounds like they're sort of taking a firm line. And this is really, I think, to reinforce the position that the Greenlandic government have had all along, which is that they're not for sale and they're not some sort of bargaining chip in a great big geopolitical fight. You were just in Greenland. Polls there show that most Greenlanders are opposed to becoming part of the U.S., but there are politicians, you report, on the island who are pushing dialogue with the U.S., and I would imagine those are voices that the White House may be hoping to amplify today.

1:56Yes, there is a division of opinion. And it's essentially this. Most Greenlanders do not want to become part of the US, but a sizable chunk of them do see the US as a way to gain independence from Denmark. So the argument goes that if Greenland voted for independence, it could partner with the US and offer the US favorable access to minerals to military installations, and in return receive a sort of block payment from the US. And that would ease its transition from being controlled by Denmark to being an independent state. Now, the thing is, there's been a bit of a mood shift. When I was there, I've been in NUK this last week, and I was in NUK a year ago.

2:40And back then, the vibe was very much that this was an exciting moment for Greenland. This was closer ties with the US could herald new investment, could accelerate independence. Now, when I went back, the feeling was very much one of fear and uncertainty. People really are starting to get a bit worried that this is spinning out of control. Trump has reiterated threats to use some sort of military force to coerce the Greenlandic people and the Danes to hand the island over. And so people now are feeling, I think, a lot less positive about this. And so I think the White House will have a battle on its hands to win over the hearts and minds of the Greenlanders.

3:17You know, that puts even more at stake, right, in these meetings at the White House today, sort of what the rhetoric is from American officials. And we should note that President Trump isn't scheduled to be at this meeting, which had been set to be led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, which Vice President J.D. Vance is now leading. Yes. And I think that throws a wild card into the mix. Rubio has always been slightly more measured in his statements about Greenland. He, earlier this month, made it very clear that the U.S. wasn't going to use military force and that it was looking to buy the island.

3:49J.D. Vance has been more outspoken and has really repeated many of the arguments that Trump has put forward, which is that, you know, unless America moves with decisive action to take control of Greenland, the island could fall into the laps of the Chinese or the Russians, and the US would have an enemy on its doorstep. But I think from the Greenlandic and the Danish perspective, and remember, it's the Greenlandic people and the Danish government that called for this meeting, they really want to just reset talks and take the heat out of the situation. They want to go there and say, look, let's have a proper discussion as opposed to having an argument over social media.

4:26And so I think that's what they're trying to achieve. They're trying to normalize the diplomatic back and forth so that the more inflammatory comments that have been coming out of the White House stop. I've been speaking to Wall Street Journal correspondent Max Colchester. Max, thank you so much for the update. Thank you very much, Luke. The Trump administration is expected to announce the next phase of its Gaza peace plan as soon as today. Officials say that a group of Palestinians will take over the day-to-day running of the area, forming what the U.S. is calling the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza.

5:00The group will be tasked with the essentials, including opening schools, fixing the power grid, and managing basic services like trash collection. Journal reporter Anat Pellet in Tel Aviv says that although the announcement signifies a move towards rebuilding, significant challenges remain. A huge one is that Hamas is still showing resistance to stepping down from its role in governance and also from disarming. We've actually seen the group working to rebuild its military and governance capabilities. Another open question, the size and composition of a post-war stabilization force. We report that Indonesia and Morocco have committed to sending troops, but that many countries don't want their soldiers being asked to forcefully disarm Hamas.

5:44And we've learned that the Trump administration is using support from Venezuela's opposition leader to justify its push to oust Nicolas Maduro. Legal documents reviewed by the Wall Street Journal show the White House believes it can legally bypass the U.N. Security Council and Congress, but senators aren't so sure. They could vote as early as today to limit the president's power to launch further attacks in Venezuela. Coming up, SACS files for bankruptcy in the highest-profile department store collapse since the pandemic, and Netflix prepares to sweeten its bid for Warner. Those stories and more after the break.

6:26At least six prosecutors have resigned from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Minnesota over the Trump administration's handling of the federal investigation into the killing of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent last week. According to our reporting, among the concerns of the departing prosecutors was pressure to investigate Good's wife. At the same time, we are exclusively reporting that President Trump lashed out at a group of U.S. attorneys at a White House photo shoot last week, calling them weak and complaining that they weren't moving fast enough to prosecute his favored targets. The exchange came a day before federal prosecutors sent grand jury subpoenas to the Federal Reserve on Friday related to Fed Chair Jerome Powell's testimony last summer about the central bank's building renovation project.

7:13What tariffs? China is reporting that it notched a record$1.2 trillion trade surplus last year on the back of demand supercharged by the AI boom. While shipments to the U.S. dropped by a fifth, they were offset by 13 percent export growth to Southeast Asia, 8 plus percent to the EU and 26 percent to Africa. Ramping up its push on affordability, the Trump administration is taking aim at publicly traded home building companies, with a top housing official hinting that they could face penalties if they don't lend a hand in helping to lower prices. Last week, Trump targeted buybacks in the defense industry and is expected to present more details on his affordability push at Davos next week.

7:58We've got a big Chapter 11 filing in retail. The parent company of Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus is seeking bankruptcy protection barely a year after a$2.7 billion merger meant to create a luxury juggernaut out of the storied brands. Our Suzanne Kappner has more. At the moment, the plan is to try to reorganize the company and have it emerge from bankruptcy on stronger footing. But there will likely be some store closures. Saks and Neiman Marcus operate in several overlapping markets, and shoppers may notice that the stores have less merchandise to sell in coming months. Vendors are holding off on shipments until they get paid.

8:34And we report that Netflix is preparing to up the ante in its bidding war with Paramount over Warner Brothers Discovery by converting its prior cash-in-stock deal to all cash. The streamer, which is vying for Warner Studios and HBO Max business, is hoping to give shareholders weighing the two offers a deal they can't refuse.

8:57And finally, actor Matthew McConaughey is attempting to fight unauthorized AI deepfakes by trademarking himself, or rather, some of his most notable movie moments. Journal-entertainment reporter Ben Fritz told us that includes the famous line from 1993's Dazed and Confused, All right, all right, all right. If the AI-generated audio or video is being used to sell a product, then there are state laws now called the state right of publicity that would allow the performer to file a legal claim to stop it. But it's a lot murkier if it's a creative expression or maybe it's a creative video, but you also put it on YouTube or TikTok or something and it's monetized through advertisements.

9:40Matthew McConaughey's lawyers are betting that if there's a trademark that basically covers anything that looks or sounds like Matthew McConaughey, then they can put a stop to it. But they admit that this is a novel legal approach. And if somebody who gets a letter from them decides to challenge them in court, they don't know what a judge will decide. I think you'll see a number of people at minimum keep a close watch. And I wouldn't be surprised to see some other actors or performers try to file trademarks of their own. Hmm, I wonder if I should have any of those. And that's it for What's News for this Wednesday morning.

10:13Today's show was produced by Hattie Moyer and Daniel Bach. Our supervising producer was Sandra Kilhoff, and we had additional help from Christina Rocca. I'm Luke Vargas for The Wall Street Journal. We will be back tonight with a new show. Until then, thanks for listening.