“We will expand our territory,” said Trump. Um, where?

Three unusual words were included in Trump's inauguration speech, deep enough in a long sentence that they are in danger of being overlooked.

Trump has referred to US territorial expansion, something that has not happened in generations. He has included the words “expand our territory” among a number of things he wants to do.

That's obviously remarkable given all of Trump's recent musings on making Canada a state, annexing Greenland, and restoring the Panama Canal.

But it was vague. He was just talking about taking back the Panama Canal and then he was talking about planting the American flag on Mars.

It was on the to-do list. “The United States will once more consider itself a rising nation, increasing our wealth, expanding our territory, building our cities, raising our expectations, and carrying our flag to new and beautiful horizons. . And we will pursue our manifest destiny to the stars, launching American astronauts to plant the stars and stripes on Mars. Ambition is the lifeblood of a great nation, and right now our nation is more ambitious than any other.”

To be clear, Trump did not mention either Canada or Greenland in his speech. For what it's worth, the idea of ​​annexing any of those places is deeply unpopular among Americans, according to a request the Wall Street Journal published a few days ago.