How the U.S. Forgot It Was an Arctic Nation

Since he first took office in 2017, Trump has made few visits to this remote outpost of his domain. He had last traveled to the state in 2022 for a rally ahead of his reelection bid. Previous trips advertised as presidential visits coincided with refueling stopovers on flights to and from Asia. In total, Trump has made just five official visits to Alaska —compared with 21 to Florida in 2025 alone.

When U.S. President Donald Trump arrived at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson last summer to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, political pundits took notice of the symbolic choice of venue . Alaska, a former Russian territory sold to the United States during friendlier times, represented both a historic and geographic bridge between the two powers. Siberia lies just 55 miles away across the Bering Strait, and, to this day, many Alaska Natives share more in common with its indigenous Chukchi people than with the average American. Yet the sea ice, remote villages, and snow-capped mountains that define the so-called Last Frontier were far removed from Trump’s visit to the military installation in Anchorage. With a low-hanging cloud bank shrouding the horizon, it’s likely Trump never even glimpsed the summit of Mount McKinley—the Denali peak he controversially renamed last year—before returning home to the Lower 48 and the manicured golf courses that are the antithesis of Alaska’s rugged wilderness.

When U.S. President Donald Trump arrived at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson last summer to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, political pundits took notice of the symbolic choice of venue. Alaska, a former Russian territory sold to the United States during friendlier times, represented both a historic and geographic bridge between the two powers. Siberia lies just 55 miles away across the Bering Strait, and, to this day, many Alaska Natives share more in common with its indigenous Chukchi people than with the average American.