Transcript: Rep. Mike Turner on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," Jan. 18, 2026

The following is the transcript of an interview with GOP Rep. Mike Turner of Ohio that aired on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" on Jan. 18, 2026.

MARGARET BRENNAN: We're joined now by Ohio Republican Congressman Mike Turner. He is the head of the US delegation to NATO's Parliamentary Assembly. Congressman Turner, I imagine that many of those NATO partners are calling you right now and saying, What is the President doing with this threat of escalating tariffs against us unless we hand over Greenland? What are you saying to them?

REP. TURNER: Margaret, as you know, this is, this, Greenland and the United States and America is not a new issue. I mean, this- five times–

MARGARET BRENNAN: Threatening to invade it is a new issue.

REP. TURNER: Right. It certainly is a new issue. Five times, the United States has had a discussion about Greenland all the way back to the 1800s, four times in the 1900s, and the President's raised it twice. We have a 1951 defense agreement with respect to a presence that we have a military presence there. The President's not wrong if there's a national security issue. With respect to- to Greenland.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Senator Warner said there was no direct threat other than from the United States.

REP. TURNER: But there are national security issues there–

MARGARET BRENNAN: Generally in the Arctic.

REP. TURNER: In the Arctic itself, and with respect to Greenland. But there certainly is no authority that the United- that the President has to use military force to seize territory from a NATO country. And certainly this is problematic that the President has made this statement and has caused tension among the alliance, and there certainly is going to be continuation of a discussion among all of our allies as to what could this mean. And certainly people need to have some understanding of what are the basic principles. America still is for democracy. America still is for self determination of people for sovereignty of other nations. And, and that's certainly our basic principles and values. And certainly, I think this does put at risk, we're seeing from our allies, their response. They're very concerned about Trump's response, and this, it's putting at risk, I think, Trump's peace principles, with respect to Gaza, with respect to Ukraine and Russia, his leadership among our allies, because he needs our allies for being a base for his ability to rally. And certainly one of his principles of trade and his ability to help our economy, it's put at risk his EU negotiations–

MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. He's– They're threatening to blow up the trade deal.

REP. TURNER: There- he had a monumental deal with the EU where he is going to go to zero tariffs with the EU, that's at risk. So certainly, you know people, people are concerned. He has prospectively said that he is going to impose these tariffs. So there is, I think, this period of time where there will be a dialog and discussion. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, there was, this past week. There was the diplomatic meaning, and the outcome afterwards was the President put this tweet up saying he's putting in the tariffs. So it didn't seem the diplomacy actually went anywhere.

REP. TURNER: Well, and there, I think there will certainly be a discussion. Certainly the, the American public are, I think, are questioning–

MARGARET BRENNAN: Yeah, well you saw our poll, shared it with you. 70% of Americans disapprove of using funds to buy Greenland. 86% disapprove of him using military force to take it. How do you justify and explain his strategy when both our allies and Americans say no?

REP. TURNER: I think people would prefer a focus on the economy instead of a focus on Greenland itself. I think certainly in Congress, you know, we're looking at trying to make certain we get the budget deal through, and we don't have a shutdown. And as we look to the President's proposal on national security, we look at his proposal on increasing our defense budget, and that's how we certainly want to–

MARGARET BRENNAN: Is it legal for him to even try to use tariffs in this way? I mean, Congress could claw back this authority if you wanted to put a check on him.

REP. TURNER: Well, Article One, Section Eight, does reserve to Congress international trade and the International Emergency Economic Powers Act on a very limited basis, delegates to the president the ability to do some sanctions. And currently before the Supreme Court, there is this issue. It's whether or not he even has the authority to do tariffs at all. Now, depending upon how the Supreme Court rules, they may find he doesn't even have tariff authority, but even if he is found to have tariff authority, I don't believe he has the ability to impose tariffs for the purposes of compelling other nations to sell the United States land for the person, but for the purposes of us expanding. Now in this issue–

MARGARET BRENNAN: How many Republicans are with you on that?

REP. TURNER: Well–

MARGARET BRENNAN: Because Speaker Johnson was in the United Kingdom telling everyone that the President is just playing chess here.

REP. TURNER: Well, you know–

MARGARET BRENNAN: You're taking him seriously, and if you are, then what do you do? 

REP. TURNER: I– there certainly are national security issues. The President having identified this with respect to the fact of this is the Golden Dome, and that there are locations that are going to be necessary with respect to the operations Golden Dome is absolutely an essential issue. And the Golden Dome is going to be very, very important. We have other locations that are essential, critical infrastructure overall, where that we don't own, and I think certainly Greenland and the Greenlanders need to decide their future and their outcome. I think this is more of an issue of asking them to join us, as opposed to Art of the Deal. This doesn't–

MARGARET BRENNAN: -- But we already have the ability to do a lot. And what's so baffling to European allies, and I know you've heard this from them as well, they sent those troops to Greenland to show that they will defend Greenland against those threats. And yet the president interpreted that not as help from our NATO allies, but as a threat from our NATO allies. Does he understand how NATO works?

REP. TURNER: And that- that is certainly- I think you know- and when you- when you look at- at the fact- that, you know, of the- of the allies that he's talking about putting a tariff on, seven of them are F-35 partners. Three of them, we have US nuclear weapons on their soil. And five of them, we have permanent troops on their soil. These are not just casual allies. These are very strong allies. And this is, if we're talking about Greenland, you know, this is not art of the deal. This is more the dating game. I mean, we need to be more on, you know, how we would be a partner, not more how we would be compulsory. And this certainly isn't the type of language that someone should be using and trying to ask someone to join you in a partnership.

MARGARET BRENNAN: So all those technical points I take, but you also look at this from the other lens, which is Senator Murkowski said that this is creating a dynamic that benefits Vladimir Putin, "by threatening the stability of the strongest coalition of democracies the world has ever seen." Even without doing anything other than a tweet, threatening the alliance-

REP. TURNER: Well the thing is- what's concerning to me is this. We're not in Germany-- 

MARGARET BRENNAN: -- Doesn't it benefit Russia here?--  

REP. TURNER: -- Well, and also, we're not just in Germany to defend the NATO alliance. We're in Germany to defend Israel and Africa and the Middle East. Our worldwide footprint is our worldwide power. I mean, the presidency's authority, his ability to project power is- is our NATO alliance, the strongest alliance in the world. To threaten the NATO alliance to say, well we'll just pack up and go home means that- that the United States doesn't have the ability to project power. The ability for the United States president to do things to benefit anyone around the world is to be around the world. It means to be able to have partners. Means to be able to do operations. Almost every operation that this President has done over the past year has in part, been done out of and with, and including, the bases that we have in Europe and in NATO. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: But the Treasury Secretary said in another network, the President believes enhanced security is not possible without Greenland being part of the United States. They're being very clear. 

REP. TURNER: And I truly believe that it is that, you know, the President can continue the- the issue of engagement, but presidential want doesn't translate into presidential authority.

MARGARET BRENNAN: We will leave it there. Congressman Turner, thank you for your time today. We'll be right back.