Fox News chief political analyst Brit Hume said Monday that President Donald Trump’s repeated comments about Greenland reflect a familiar strategy rather than a literal threat.

Trump has repeatedly pushed for U.S. control of the self-governing territory, citing its strategic position between the United States, Russia, and Europe, along with its vast reserves of critical minerals. Hume said on “Special Report with Bret Baier” that observers often focus on Trump’s public statements while missing the broader objective behind them.

“I would think so, Bret. And remember this, if you’re trying to understand Donald Trump, you can look at what he does most of the time as a never-ending quest for leverage in dealing with other people, other politicians, and other nations,” Hume said when host Bret Baier pressed him on whether Trump’s public rhetoric represents only the visible part of a deeper strategy aimed at gaining leverage.

Hume said Trump is pursuing leverage rather than force in his approach to Greenland, arguing the president favors a transactional deal over any military action.

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“That’s what’s going on here. I don’t think he’s going to militarily attack Greenland. I think he’d love to buy it if the Danes would sell it to him,” Hume said. “What I do think is this, that his efforts on Greenland have baffled a lot of people. It’s not popular in this country. If he gets a good deal and we get the use of Greenland for our military purposes, that may all work out for him. But at the moment, he’s underwater on that.” (RELATED: Liberal PM Attacks Trump’s Greenland Push As He Cozies Up With America’s No. 1 Enemy On Foreign Trip)

Trump announced Saturday that Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland will see a 10% levy imposed on all exports to the United States starting Feb. 1, with the rate set to jump to 25% on June 1. Trump said the higher tariff will stay in effect until the United States completes what he described as a full acquisition of Greenland.

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