The head of Bikers for Trump is skipping the usual motorcycle meetups this spring to hunker down by himself in Greenland, acting as an unofficial and unappointed ambassador for President Trump.
Bikers for Trump leader Chris Cox hopes to improve how the islanders view Mr. Trump, who wants to annex the Danish territory. So far, the Trump-loving biker has reaped only death threats.
“I’m not the most popular guy in town right now as you can imagine,” Mr. Cox said in a phone call with The Washington Times.
Mr. Trump wants Greenland to become part of the United States for national security purposes and to permit U.S. mining of what is believed to be an abundance of critical minerals buried under the frozen landscape.
Greenland’s leaders and many of its residents, however, want independence from Denmark and oppose acquisition by the U.S.
“Go home! We are not interested in Trump taking over,” resident Janni Nielsen told Mr. Cox following his Facebook live post from the snow-covered island.
Mr. Cox, who is weathering the freezing temperatures in a denim jacket adorned with a prominent Bikers for Trump patch, said he is undeterred.
He has spent days mixing among the residents. Mr. Cox said he hopes to serve as “a calming influence” in a sea of anti-Trump anger among Greenlanders who reject Mr. Trump’s overtures.
“People are looking at me like I’m a Russian with the machine gun right now when they see the Trump patch,” Mr. Cox said. “But it doesn’t take talking too long to break it down and explain to them that I’m here to show support for them, explain to them that Donald Trump is a political mathematician, and every time you think he steps in something, he comes out with a clean shoe.”
Mr. Trump hasn’t dropped his quest to acquire Greenland. In his March address to Congress, the president invited its 57,000 residents to support a U.S. takeover and join in the American renaissance he’s promised to make happen.
“We will keep you safe. We will make you rich. And together, we will take Greenland to heights like you have never thought possible before,” Mr. Trump said.
Mr. Cox said he wants Greenlanders to understand that Mr. Trump is not seeking a hostile takeover.
But Mr. Cox is concerned Greenland’s patrols of the coast are inadequate and U.S. military forces may have to protect the country, which could ultimately require annexation, in his opinion.
The U.S. operates Pituffik Space Base, formerly Thule Air Base, under an agreement with Denmark.
The base is located in the northwestern corner of Greenland and conducts defense operations and research.
The president’s press team, responding to an inquiry about Mr. Cox from The Times, laughed at the suggestion that Mr. Trump was aware of or had endorsed the biker’s Greenland visit.
Mr. Cox said the president “may learn of my work organically” at some point, perhaps by reading about it in the news.
“I’m going to stick around here. And no, I don’t know anybody other than the people I’ve met today and I just plan on doing the best we can to have an influence here,” Mr. Cox said.
Bikers for Trump became a fixture at Trump campaign rallies in the 2016 race, when scores of bikers served as unofficial security or the “wall of meat” between Trump fans and anti-Turmp protesters.
The group morphed into grass-roots organizers for Mr. Trump in the 2020 and 2024 campaigns and raised money as a political action committee. Mr. Cox changed the name to Bikers for America in 2024, according to a Federal Election Commission filing, but Mr. Cox continues to use the original name on social media.
The president appears to have last publicly praised the group on Labor Day in 2023 when he hosted an event for the bikers at his Bedminster, New Jersey golf club.
“A very large group of ’Bikers for Trump’ just left Bedminster. What a great time we all had,” Mr. Trump posed on Truth Social. “The motorcycles were AMAZING, the love and enthusiasm absolutely ’beyond’. Thank you all. We must WIN in 2024. MAGA.!”
Mr. Cox said the language Mr. Trump and Republicans are using when they talk about annexing Greenland sounds like a hostile takeover to residents there, and when he returns to the United States he wants to meet with GOP lawmakers to discuss a new strategy.
“I’m going to share with any congressional member who will hear me,” Mr. Cox said. “I’ve got some suggestions for how we can clean this up. We need to change the hearts of some of these Greenlanders. They love Americans but they are very frustrated with us right now.”
