What was it like being in the room with Donald Trump in Davos?

I was in the room and just saw President Trump enter and it’s fair to say he got a good welcome from the crowd. Certainly at first. Standing ovation.

Plus, there was an incredible scrum of people trying to get in and a lot of people turned them down. Even heads of state did the same.

And security was incredibly tight, not allowing even some of the most famous attendees to enter or leave the hall.

But minutes into his speech, Trump kept his cool. It even went so far as to say that it wanted the UK to “do great work”.

Some people thought the day the American president set the rules for a new global economy was filled with grandfatherly advice.

It was a far cry from the benign and threatening tone of his social media posts, which claimed Greenland would become an American land.

But who is the real Donald Trump? Have you heard how seriously some of his rhetoric was delivered?

As I entered, I heard about the extraordinary events of last night, when Trump’s Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, told the audience that “you are dead” in terms of the European economy.

There was a strike. Could something like that have happened today? He seemed to be trying to avoid it.

At first I thought Trump was trying to be diplomatic. Perhaps he was trying to speak softly after hearing considerable criticism of himself.

He spoke in friendly terms about the Western allies who were most disturbed by his social media posts.

He even admitted that he should not speak on the controversial Greenland issue. He vowed to continue taking on the issue.

But the speech seemed to take a dark turn, almost as if it could not be helped.

First, he described America’s role in helping Greenland in the past, including taking a friendly stance toward Denmark.

But he insulted Europe’s largest economy, saying that if it weren’t for the United States, everyone in the hall “would be speaking German.” And it came.

He announced that the United States was seeking immediate negotiations to acquire Greenland.

He said the agreement was reached through negotiations. No force required. But America needed a “full title.”

He said he wanted to build “the greatest golden dome this land has ever built.”

And while he warned Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney about his comments a day earlier, he emphasized that he would use Greenland to defend Canada.

“I’d like to ask for some ice… It’s a very small favor.”

It was incredible to see this spoken out loud.

There is high security, high risk, and high tension in the Alps as a would-be sheriff of the world wields his own new rules.

Reactions in the room varied.

The president’s attempt at charm seemed to earn him polite applause. But his irritation with other leaders’ Davos speeches about the rigged election left some in disbelief.

Although he promised not to invade Greenland, many were surprised by his attempts to persuade Europe to hand over the territory.

California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday’s speech was a TACO reference to the “Trump is always scared” catchphrase used to mock the president.

He claimed that President Trump stepped down due to strong opposition from President Macron and Mark Carney.

Leading Republican senator Thomas Tillis said the president’s pursuit of Greenland, even a negotiated annexation, would not win support from Congress.

So even as Trump attempted to ease tensions, he continued to criticize allies, including personal attacks on their leaders.

And while he promised not to invade Greenland, he said it would still be part of the new United States and the world should thank him for that.

The speech may have finally come to an end, but we’ll be talking about it for a long time.