Trump’s close ally and longtime friend Lindsey Graham looked Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen straight in the eye.
»Little lady,« sneered the senator from South Carolina — one of the most powerful politicians in the U.S. Congress.
New details are emerging about a dramatic meeting on Saturday afternoon at the Bayerischer Hof hotel in Munich between several senators and members of Congress and Mette Frederiksen, along with Greenland’s Premier Jens-Frederik Nielsen.
It was during this meeting that Lindsey Graham lost his temper.
The digital outlet Puck had previously reported that so-called »f-bombs« were being thrown around the room.
»Picture Graham at his worst,« a source told Puck.
But Berlingske can now reveal that events were even more intense than previously reported — and that Graham’s outburst in particular was directed at Mette Frederiksen and Jens-Frederik Nielsen.
»He called her ‘little lady,’« attendees told Berlingske.
Those present perceived the remark as deeply degrading and overtly sexist. The Prime Minister, however, appeared unfazed.
»She seemed cool,« the source said.
When Graham had finished, Frederiksen simply responded:
»When you’re done with that, the meeting can continue.«
Before that, Lindsey Graham had also emphasized to Frederiksen and Nielsen that Donald Trump was the President of the United States — and thus the most powerful man in the world.
Meaning: Neither Denmark nor Greenland should think they amount to anything compared to the mighty United States.
This »rant,« as a Danish official present in the room calls it, came across as extremely degrading toward Denmark and Greenland — especially after the “little lady«comment directed at Mette Frederiksen.
According to one source, Graham’s behavior was »shocking,« »disturbing,« and »extremely inappropriate«.
Has He Lost His Mind?
An almost theatrical scene also unfolded between Graham and Premier Jens-Frederik Nielsen.
»Graham yawned directly in his face in a way that could only be perceived as mocking,« the attendee told Berlingske.
For some of the American participants, it was too much. The Democratic senator Elissa Slotkin was reportedly so shocked that she stood up and left the meeting.
In many ways, the confrontation marked the culmination of Graham’s recent outbursts.
Already on Friday, he shocked viewers on camera when he was asked about Greenland.
»Who the hell cares who owns Greenland?« Graham said, according to C-SPAN.
At the same time, the senator said the crisis was »behind us.«
Those remarks angered Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who, according to Puck, was furious.
»Some people have been going around saying, ‘Who gives a shit about who owns Greenland?’« Tillis said. »Well, I’ll tell you who gives a shit — the people of Greenland.«
Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen reiterated during the security conference that the Greenland crisis is »not over«.
Still, the question being asked on both sides of the Atlantic is what went wrong for Lindsey Graham during Saturday’s meeting.
Participants described his behavior as »completely out of line«.
According to Berlingske’s sources, there was even speculation afterward about whether the senator from South Carolina had lost his composure entirely — whether he was fully in control of himself when he confronted the Danish and Greenlandic leaders.
Only Graham himself can answer that.
Ukraine’s Friend in the Senate
But Lindsey Graham was once known as one of the most pro-NATO senators in the United States.
He previously traveled to Munich alongside the late Senator John McCain, the Republican presidential nominee in 2008. Together, they formed a staunchly pro-NATO partnership from the old conservative party.
Graham was also among those who reacted most strongly to Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 election result.
»I’m out,« he declared on Capitol Hill, affirming that Joe Biden was the new president in the aftermath of the January 6, 2021 attack on Congress.
He later reconciled with Trump and became one of the president’s loyal supporters as the greatest political comeback in history began to take shape during the Biden administration.
Trump was unstoppable, and Graham was far from »out«, as he had previously declared after the attack on Congress.
Graham has otherwise been a hardliner when it comes to Russia and Ukraine, thereby distinguishing himself from the U.S. president. He has been a strong advocate of American support for Kyiv, yet has maintained a close relationship with Trump.
When the Greenland crisis resurfaced in 2025, Graham — who is also one of Trump’s golf partners in Florida — sought to reassure Danish diplomats.
Graham’s message was that President Trump did not mean it literally. It was not about ownership of Greenland — the president was merely trying to create a new security agreement with Denmark in the Arctic. It was »the art of the deal« playing out before our eyes, Lindsey Graham believed.
Until he changed his position again.
Graham Changed His Position
At the beginning of January, Graham began warning that he believed President Trump meant it when he said he wanted to own Greenland. It also caused concern that Trump declined to rule out using the military to gain control of Greenland.
That, according to Graham’s associates, was the impression he formed after spending time in close contact with Trump in the days following the attack on Venezuela: that the president meant what he said about Greenland.
When tensions later eased at the meeting in Davos at the end of January — where Trump finally ruled out using military force to secure ownership — Graham was among the first to align himself with the de-escalation.
He appeared almost relieved that Trump had stepped back from what had become a historic rift with NATO allies and Europe.
That is why it is so difficult to understand what happened to Lindsey Graham in Munich over the weekend, where he completely lashed out during the meeting with Mette Frederiksen and Jens-Frederik Nielsen.
The only conclusion one can now draw is that the crisis over Greenland is not over.
Although many members of Congress — including Republicans — support Denmark, those closest to Trump cannot be relied upon unconditionally.
Lindsey Graham has been called »the Trump whisperer« because he has the president’s attention.
But on Saturday in Munich, nothing was whispered to either Denmark or Greenland.
The words were delivered so forcefully that those gathered at the Bayerischer Hof remained shaken for hours afterward.
Jacob Heinel Jensen is Berlingske’s Washington correspondent.
Translated by Søren Kassebeer.