Perhaps it is a good thing that the US is not involved now. If only "they" can keep Mr. Trump from scuttling the talks by opening his mouth (or using his twitter finger).
This is but the beginning of Nations freezing out the US when it comes to negotiating with one and other. I don't trust North Korea and think their country is a dystopian nightmare, but Kim is playing it perfectly. By opening negotiations with the South, Kim will get the South to make concessions he could never have gotten before. The South will not seek our counsel because the US is currently being run by an idiot.
Next up, China will be mediating conflicts all over the world to fill the void the US once occupied.
1
"Above all, the officials said, the Trump administration will resist efforts by the North to drive a wedge between the United States and its ally."
Too late, Trump has driven the wedge pretty deep already!
1
The Times' relentless news messaging on Korea is that warlike Trump is at irreconcilable odds with pacifist Moon, whose more conciliatory approach is the only reasonable path towards a lasting peace. But immediate and more distant history suggest otherwise. Most immediately (and as yet still unreported by the Times), Trump agreed to suspend the annual US/ROK spring war games during the winter Olympics. This is a yuge concession, belying his bellicose tweets. In the more distant past, prior South Korean attempts at rapprochement with the North have always foundered when the North predictably engages in pathological treachery and deceit, often of a lethal sort. Please report the news instead of trying to shape it.
President Moon had no choice.
He's trying to save lives. Trump was not only obviously wanting to launch military strikes that would result in thousands of deaths, he was rolling out reckless tweets that were actually goading North Korea into war.
There's no chance at any diplomacy with the President of the United States tweeting like a 12 year old.
1
I hope that the two Koreas can begin to resolve some of their differences and move toward reduced aggression and reunification. That will help to stabilize Asia and contribute to the stability of the world. They are one country. Ignore the ultimatums from that ten year old moron.
It seems to me that if the two Koreas were able to unify, and I realize that is probably still a long way off from happening, that would be to the benefit of the entire world. And why not? It happened in Germany, didn't it?
Trump is the spoiled child who becomes angry when the game is not going his way and decides to take his bat and ball and go home! Countries do not and will not seek to work with him to affect change. They see him as irrelevant obstacle and will seek other avenues to achieve their desires.
What an embarrassment this guy is.
And now the el supremo narcissist claims ownership of the North/South Korean dialogue resumption. Trump is vile, and makes me retch.
It's not North Korea that's trying to drive a wedge in between South Korea and the United States, it's Mr. Trump himself.
Sitting on the bench, collecting slivers. And he thinks he is calling the shots here?
1
Too many here spout their hatred daily for Trump, his tweets, his hair, his narcissism, etc., without considering the topic. Should South Korea talk with North Korea? Of course, if they choose to. Does the US or west control South Korea? Nope. The US has made South Korea an economic force, one that would have never been achieved without intervention. As a matter of fact, South Korea would be part of Kim's Korea had the 50s, 60s, and early 70s not have happened. But Moon knows nothing, or doesn't care, about history. I say this because, while I don't think anyone has the right to stop talks between two nations, South Korea isn't talking with a national leader. He's talking with an abusive, corrupt, ego-maniac that is killing his own citizens in favor of shooting off bombs while they starve. You can dislike Trump, but do NOT compare the two; Kim is an evil psychopath and much worse than his dad. And that is saying something!
Time for our South Korean ambassador really jump into face to face talks with South Korea and keep the trumper highly informed as to what's going on,
Oh wait, I forgot the we have no ambassador to South Korea. The trumper hasn't appointed one yet. Guess he figures as much as he knows an ambassador, perhaps one who has personal contacts and maybe even speaks the language wouldn't measure up to what the trumper knows about Korea. Would be a waste of money.
Sanders misses the point - people HAVE stopped questioning Trump's mental fitness. Trump is obviously unfit. Trump is like a dog driving a clown car. The clowns do well if they can keep him from crashing it, and making the course corrections appear to be the dog's intent is icing on the cake. Of COURSE Trump is on the sidelines. Trump presents as an idiot. He has no credibility, and the world is moving on as best it can without him.
1
"Trump administration will resist efforts by the North to drive a wedge between the United States and its ally"
Admit it or not American global influence has waned. Trump is wholly responsible for the diplomatic breakdown between the US and South Korea which has sidelined the US, and has repeated this everywhere.
“And if the South Koreans are viewed as running off the leash. . .”
So South Korea is our lap dag?
2
South Korea should be lock, stock a barrel with the US. Why? South Korea gains from talks with North Korea. But what are they gaining by siding with the US? Total annihilation! Hard as it is to admit, the 35 yr. old Kim has made a smarter move with diplomacy than 70 yr. old child President is about to play with his bigger red button.
9
Scenario 1- North and South Korea find an accommodation, and the imminent nuclear threat is defused. Trump takes credit and says it was all due to his "deal making."
Scenario 2- War breaks out on the Korean Peninsula. Thousands are killed. Trump says "I told everyone that this would happen. People should have listend to me."
Trump wanted a war to make himself look big, something that would make him look tough to the Chinese and prove to everyone he's not Putin's caddy.
Instead, he once again made himself look like a fool. Kim Jong Un has what he wants now, what he has always craved from the very beginning: The world's rapt attention, and South Korea and China at the negotiating table. Trump doesn't know it but he has already played his part.
1
Trump is already taking credit for this.
Unless it doesn't work ....
2
Good call for both Koreas. Talks need to be for adults only. Trump can play in the ball pit while the grownups talk business.
10
As long as the Pretend King Trump is in office, we will be on the sidelines and watch our world leader role be extinguished and replaced by other world leaders. Czar Putin is creating at this moment a different currency to bypass international laws and us. Yes the push is on for leaders and we do not have one.
2
Trump has delegated talks with North Korea to his sidekick President Moon Jae-in. Smart management but certainly will be monitored closely by Trump. Business is business.
Mike Huckabee's daughter should be held accountable for her role as propaganda minister of the Trump administration. She embraces it a little too zealously for my comfort. You can't shake the devil's hand then say you're only kidding.
1
North Korea calls South Korea a running dog, puppet, lackey etc of the United States. This entire article gives truth to this characterization of South Korea, pooh poohed by most commentators. It's essence is reflected in this quote" "“It is fine for the South Koreans to take the lead, but if they don’t have the U.S. behind them, they won’t get far with North Korea,” said Daniel R. Russel, a former assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs in the Obama administration. “And if the South Koreans are viewed as running off the leash, it will exacerbate tensions within the alliance.”
Anyone who accepts such claims at face values needs to closely examine how much their thinking has been infiltrated by state narratives. To write an article like this one without any self consciousness of what one is asserting, is utterly remarkable.
Running off the Leash?
“And if the South Koreans are viewed as running off the leash, it will exacerbate tensions within the alliance” ----- Daniel R. Russel, a former assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs in the Obama administration
Hmmmm. Does anyone else see a problem with this attitude?
2
Except for the threat of war he imposes on the Korean peninsula, Trump has proved himself utterly irrelevant and feeble.
2
@Jim Steinberg
Irrelevant and feeble? Really?
ISIS is practically defeated, the Jerusalem embassy move didn't cause the massive protests in the Arab world that the liberal media said were going to happen, the economy is healthier than it's been in over a decade by all significant measures, a recent poll showed that a majority of Americans (including a majority of Hispanics) approve of Trump's immigration policies, and the vast majority of Americans (including well over ninety percent in the lowest tax bracket) are getting a reduction in their taxes. All of this, and he still hasn't completed his first year in office.
Compare this to Obama's worthless "red lines" in Syria and sell-out to the Iranians on the nuclear deal and doubling of our national debt in just seven years. And what exactly were his legislative achievements again? Oh right, there were none (other than the failed Obamacare). He ruled by executive order, just like most Latin American socialist dictators do.
I'd sure like to know what your definition of "feeble" is.
1
The rest of the world has caught on fast. The United Staes government cannot be counted on as an ally in any situation. Trump is mercurial and inconsistent in every transaction. He wants to be dictator of all terms and agreements in all circumstances.
Hopefully, no irreparable damage will be done, but the standing of the United States in world affairs is shot.
15
Since the beginning of 2018 I have read many articles and exposes in various publications of repute but I am still looking for one that would explain me what outcome are we looking for in the Korean Peninsula?
Is one of the option for people of the Korean Peninsula is Peace? If so let us work towards it, hopefully we can muster enough courage to ensure that Trump & his Administration does not derail this process and start WW-3 by engaging our Representatives in the Congress.
Yes it is a fact that Trump was outwitted by Kim Jong Un. Let it be, let’s move on and let the neighbors solve their issues/fight as they have the most skin in it. We are sitting pretty a long ways whereas the 2 Koreas are at shouting distance and any miscalculation would be devastating for both of them and thousands of our servicemen and women who are in harms way in Korea, Japan, and Philippines; some estimates put the number at around 1 million.
Trump may be upset as he is side swapped by the leader of a small nation (remember his side swapping of the Prime Minister of Montenegro in Brussels). Some adult need to tell him to sit quietly and let peace prevail in Korean Peninsula. He should also remember that President Obama told him that his problem would be North Korea.
Just stay out of the way and let Moon work his magic with Kim Jong Un.
3
Those who favor Kim's and North Korea's cause say Trump is the one doing the "taunting." Those who favor the US cause say it is Kim doing the "taunting." Everything these days is seen by the press through partisan prisms. Objectivity is apparently passe'.
When a White House press secretary says we don't have to question a president's mental fitness, I worry even more than before. This should not even have to be a topic of conversation in a presidency. But it is because Mr. Trump continues to push everyone's buttons. Thank goodness there is not a real nuclear button on his desk. I fear he'd push that one too.
The big deal maker, as he fancies himself, is sitting this one out. Can his ego deal with that? I hope so, because he is a dangerous person who does not belong in the White House.
1
South Korea no doubt believes they are better off dealing directly with the North rather than following Trump's lead. After all, President Agent Orange is one who thinks the he is all we need and that our career diplomats who actually know something about the region, the two Koreas, and the issues are irrelevant.
The United States has no moral authority when it comes to nuclear weapons. Why should the enemies of the US be held to a non-nuclear standard even as America is spending hundreds of billions of dollars to modernize and update it's arsenal of thousands of nuclear weapons. The US is also the world's leading aggressor, and has been since the second world war (although they were competing with the USSR for the first half of that period). Anybody who has spend time thinking about these weapons realizes that A) they are defensive weapons. They are not well suited to an invading force, and B) they are the only thing proven to keep the US from invading at will. The day that NK disarmed would be the start of the end of NK
1
Well, as far as driving a wedge between the U.S. and South Korea, the Trump Administration doesn't need help from the North to accomplish that. Trump is doing a good enough job of alienating South Korea all by himself. They will suffer the most if the U.S. Is successful in provoking a war.
In December 2016 the Trump transition team summarily ordered home the US Ambassador to South Korea, Mark Lippert, (in conjunction with every other politically appointed ambassador from the Obama years). This while our ally faced a very serious and crisis-prone situation, with tens of thousands of U.S. military personnel and 100,000+ US noncombatants living in South Korea. And most importantly? Trump failed to replace him.
So 2017, a year of crisis on the Korean Peninsula, and we have no real diplomatic leadership there at the home of one of our biggest trading and military allies... because our real estate developer of a President, Donald Trump, enjoys the game of bilateral, man-to-man negotiations (which he failed at over the years, too many times to cite).
The NY Times also fails to mention that a hawkish candidate for Ambassador was finally appointed last month, Dr. Victor Cha, and is due some day to have confirmation hearing. So 14 months without an Ambassador while Donald points to a nuclear button and jokes about using it. Do you miss the good old days of Obama? I think the South Koreans do and they are wise now to work out their own deal with the only other Korean speaking nation in the world; North Korea...
The USA has no plan but those two clever enemies of ours, Russian and China, do. It is the perfect place for them to stick in the dagger and twist it. They want a weakened America and they are getting it... And working for it.
5
Sometimes wonder who is going to protect us from this madman? Seems to me countries would be wise to go their own way. Who would want to put the US in charge of anything under these conditions? Let the world find its own way to peace. Nothing of value has been coming from this administration, nationally or internationally. Just more and more chaos. This is the problem when administrations are put in office by a minority of the population. The broad trends of history are obstructed. Reform the electoral college!
The headline reads: "As Two Koreas Open Talks, U.S. Watches From the Sidelines" Well, fine by me. South Korea has its own interests (e.g., to avoid having mortar fire rain down on Seoul or ever having to take on the responsibility of saving the North if it internally implodes), and we have ours (e.g., making sure that we're never going to be on the receiving end of North Korean ICBMs). Frankly, South Korean interests often hold back our own, and vice versa. Does anyone think that the US would have ever allowed North Korea to produce nuclear weapons if there hadn't been an "alliance" with South Korea that hand-tied us from attacking nuclear sites in the North because of the South's fear of what would happen to Seoul? If Trump really does have an "America first" policy -- I haven't seen any evidence of it so far (e.g., why are we still propping up that ridiculous anachronism NATO?) -- he should be encouraging the South to go it's own way. And then we'll go ours.
2
The sooner South Korea builds a matching nuclear arsenal of their own, the sooner all the saber rattling will stop. Kim likely believes he can force the US to ignore a new Korean war with atomic blackmail, which just might work, but South Korean-controlled bombs throw a wrench into that plan. Once mutual destruction is actually assured, without South Korea needing to rely on the goodwill of the US, Kim will be forced to realize that talk is the only option.
Might be time to let the Koreans settle this dispute themselves. Not sure the United States will have the capacity to contribute anything productive to this problem for at least the next 3 years.
1
The South obviously thinks that negotiations have a potential to lessen tensions. Trump seems to want to play the issue as a part of his trade policy mercantilism. With the international economy doing well and Trump benefitting from it, it would seem that he would control his bombast towards the South's economic health. Especially in light of the fact that the North is on the verge of economic collapse. The South could potentially lesson the North's oppression of their people while at the same time lessoning tensions on the peninsula.
Trump said things that are crude and challenging. "Mine is bigger than yours" is about as low as one can go.
Remember he already did that in the election, and it worked for him. There are plenty of Americans who LIKE calling out Kim in the crudest terms; they are fed up with him. Many of them voted for Trump too, and laughed at it last time.
Don't get so prim you lose sight of the voters.
Meanwhile, by design or chance, we are doing good cop / bad cop, and Trump is enjoying being the bad cop.
Trump wanted to diminish American influence in the world, so he should be happy. I expect that this tendency will spread. A country that could install Trump as President cannot be trusted. Almost half the electorate was stupid and venal enough to fall for this con man, and our 18th century political system has twice in the last 16 years installed the loser in the White House.
9
WE THE PEOPLE must shout from every town, city, country in the world -
NO WW3.
Mad Dog Mattis, The Con Don's "general" wants war and is busy putting OUR military in harms' way around the world. Steve Bannon is running around the world helping Putin cause unrest. The "news" is just a smokescreen and the world is in imminent danger from the crooks who have stolen half the wealth of the world and want it all.
Any American, and average person around the world, who does not want WW3, does not want to see governments and democracies around the world destroyed, does not want to see OUR planet destroyed with insatiable greed, does not want women to be 5th century type handmaidens must
HIT THE STREETS the weekend of January 20/21 and fight like hell to save the one thing you value most about democracy in America.
NOW is the time. It may be the only time in HIS destructive story.
https://www.facebook.com/pg/WomensMarch2018USA/events/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_protests_against_Donald_Trump
2
From a respected and feared World Power to the ignored over-drunk at the end of the bar spouting random stuff waiting for a ride.
All done inside a year.
What a crowning achievement!
29
The US has been a toothless tiger leading from behind, neither respected or feared as confirmed by Russia, China, Syria and Pakistan. While diplomatic channels rather than Tweeting is preferred, Trump let NK know that playing with nuclear weapons is suicidal and would not be met with "strategic patience" aka ignoring the issue as other administrations have. Now NK has decided to negotiate, something that Clinton, Bush 2 or Obama could not achieve.
I am fairly certain that Huckabee Sanders and Conway will be thrilled to watch the US nuked just to prove how powerful their boss is. Who on earth do these women think they are fooling?
Prediction: Trump will now say his taunting of Kim Jung Un is why KJU is now opening up communication with South Korea. As usual, if Trump can't take credit, he feels the gut pangs of failure.
But, in reality, KJU beat Trump at his own game. The mind of the less mentally stable isn't always a sign of lack of ability to be a master gamer.
In fact, that usually IS the basic premise of the master gamers who operate on gut instinct alone most of the time.
Trump thought he could control the North Korean president. But, he forgets KJU is younger and far more capable of strategies than Trump who believes he has all the answers.
It is far more likely that North Korea sees the downfall of the US under Trump as an opportunity to open up trade with the outside world that the US sanctions prohibited. So, guess what Mr. Know it All Trump? KJU bypassed your bullying and intimidation and went straight to South Korea.
Nothing like one spiteful little boy having to outwit the master of spite Trump.
3
What does your Master Strategist have to trade with the outside world? Repression?
Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Trump's mouthpiece, is almost as much of an embarrassment as the man she serves. Nonetheless, she is to be pitied for her attempts to portray the president as an intelligent, politically aware leader who is railed against by the press. The news conferences are a sham and could be discontinued, inasmuch as the president's morning tweets provide us with all we need to know about his mental fitness in the job.
7
As a U.K. citizen I too question Trump's mental fitness, but perhaps S. Korea are beginning to think they are better off dealing with their own relationship with the North than have this maniac mess things up on their behalf!
11
North and South Korea are technically still at war. The Armistice signed in 1953 has never been resolved. So much for the "relationship" between the two countries.
Any fool can understand why the South would also prefer to exclude the United States (or more specifically, the United States while it is lead by this particular President) from the talks. Trump clearly does not comprehend the stakes involved -- or rather, to the extent he does, the "America First!" President simply doesn't care enough.
But it took a special kind of fool to not anticipate that his actions would lead to this exclusion. I think we need to get used to this kind of thing, this will turn out to be the first of many important talks that the United States will be consciously excluded form over the next four years. Anything that is important enough for the US to play an important role in, will be simultaneously too important to take the risk that Trump will blow things up via some ill-timed, unconsidered action that not even his own government will see coming, let alone other nations.
11
NATO will surely demand that the US ignore Article V and refuse to come to the aid of its former allies if the evil Putin sends troops west. Surely. And, all of the porkers feeding at the foreign aid trough will refuse to accept tainted money because of Trump. Yeah. Sure.
As Trump continues to press China to intervene in stopping N Korea from building their nuclear arsenal and North and South Korea are attempting to speak with each other independent of the USA, we have to wonder if Trump understands that he is weakening our position in Asia as a power? He has already opened the door for greater China influence by taking us out of the Asia-Pacific trade agreement. Trump is making China great again while diminishing America's standing in Asia and in turn the world. Very sad.
2
Of course they will and ignoring the United States in global affair is something Americans should get used to more and more .
When we see how trump and the US ambassador talk to the rest of the world and show only signs of disrespect , the world will respond by trying to sidestep the US to move forward .
It can not be clearer when we face climate change and a US president accusing China of a hoax to damage the US economy , countries are not going to wait on us and will move forward . This country has lost credibly with the Palestinian-israeli peace talk and will slowly be seen as a unreliable global power and countries will look at Europe and China as leaders not a TV reality con man who compares his nuclear button with a dictator .
3
If all of the wonderful countries of the world are capable of moving forward on their own, why in the world didn't they do so before Trump hit the scene?
What difference will it make if the Trump administration resists efforts by the North to reduce tension with the South? What the US wants matters less and less to other nations. The US is being relegated to the sidelines, thanks to Trump. The longer he's president, the more this will happen with what used to be our allies. Trump wants to remake the US in his own image: friendless and alone.
3
Bravo! A relationship-based solution is the ONLY reliable resource for security in the world today. And it appears that sports, a.k.a. the olympics, has had something to do with it. Such a deal!
3
The smartest and likely most productive thing that world leaders can do is EXCLUDE the so-called president from any discussions.
18
As it should be. Let the Koreans talk to each other WITHOUT outside interference. The sooner the two Koreas can resolve their differences and coexist the quicker US forces can be withdrawn from the Korean peninsula and the US presence can be drastically reduced on Japanese controlled territory. Trump could best serve the peace process by shutting up. This is not about his ego, it is about world peace.
17
The best you will get from these talks is a resumption of a free trade zone, which would be a welcome improvement. One is a military dictatorship the other a democracy. Working things out would mean one or the other will accept their form of government, good luck on that one. Hard to see that being accomplished peacefully.
He got them to the table!
1
Barb, that is not much of an accomplishment. He has also escalated tensions which puts our military at greater risk as well as S Korea. Russian roulette diplomacy is not something to admire.
Trump silently from the sidelines? We wish.
8
US watches from the sidelines? I think not! President Trump provided the impetus for these moves between the two Koreas. He made Kim Jong-un realise that further aggressive actions and statements from North Korea would result in its destruction. Sanctions, extreme diplomatic pressure from China and the threat of overwhelming military force by the United States have made Kim Jong-un back down. The possibility of a future peace treaty between the two Koreas is quite possible. If this happens, credit belongs to the current US administration.
7
You may be right about (behind-the-scenes) diplomatic pressure from China but the idea that The Donald deserves credit if peace were to suddenly break out between the Koreas is...um...daffy. Kind of like thanking a pyromaniac for burning down a border fence between nations. Speaking of which..
2
To suggest this administration deserves credit for being an irrational actor to the point where we were dealt out of the deck is quite the left handed compliment. I wonder what other world problems we will solve this way?
7
Quite the opposite, Koreans have successfully achieved their goal of nuclear deterrence after decades of persistence through self-reliance, guile, and weathering the Western-imposed sanctions. Now they can negotiate a stand-down without losing "face", which is paramount in that world view. They have won what they were looking for.
The Seoul governmemt has recently provided a large portion of land for permanent US miitary bases. This is very costly for the American tax payers and a hardship on our military. Yes,both Koreas should talk of peace. More importantly,they should request to have the US military depart from their country, and work out their plans for reunification on their own.
5
The Two Koreas have been talking of peach since they signed the Armistice in 1953. How's that going?
Although Moon was elected over the weakened conservatives in the last election most people in South Korean see him as too idealistic. His goodwill mission to Beijing was a fiasco when the Chinese security punched out a Korean reporter.
Nor the people in South Korea have any illusions about Kim. South Korea still has strong traditional of Confucian family values. By comparison, it is widely recognized that Kim killed his brother, his uncle, and his aunt.
1
If they're ready to deal with a lunatic it might just as well be the one next door...
9
Koreans talking with one another! This is entirely unacceptable. Because, um... [someone please remind me, thanks!].
33
Oh, yeah. Americans seem to have forgotten that the Korean War is about NK versus SK. The US needs to shut up and let them talk, if they will.
2
Actually, that war was between the USA and China on opposite sides of the boarder
1
Once again the NYTimes has dismissed historical reality .
Since Jimmy Carters days in office the various US administrations have attempted to work with North Korea and been repeatedly made fools of. Oil, food, medicines as the North relentlessly, openly,and defiantly built weapons of mass destruction.
Trump is calling this "rocket man " out and in so doing it has made it clear that Kim is the first to die in event of war. They have tentatively come to the table so how can the NYTimes infer Trump's methods are not working ?
10
Kim would not likely be the first to die but, even if he were, tens of thousands of U.S. servicemen and women stationed in the ROK and Japan would almost inevitably die with him. Not to mention millions of civilians. Are you ready to make that sacrifice?
14
I suggest you look up the Russo-Japanese War started over 100 years ago over influence in Korea. If you think China will be a neutral bystander give it some more thought and then consider our ability to start another war, extending our military to what might be a breaking point!
2
That's just a right wing trope. 1994 Agreed Framework failed because the Republican congress refused to fund it and lift sanctions. (Now Trump and Republican is trying to replicate that feat with the Iranian deal). Then Bush followed it up with "axis of evil" threat to reverse the progress made by the South Korean policy. You can't blame North Korea for sticking to their nuclear effort after what happened to Iraq and Sadam Hussein who didn't have the nukes.
4
Years ago the Korean War could be seen through the lens of China versus the US, or Communism versus Capitalism. Those political conditions have changed completely. Now it is only about nuclear containment and the belligerence of the North against the US. We did (after all) bomb them into the Stone Age during the Korean War. If the direct participants, North and South Korea, can work out their own cooperation agreement that leads to a cessation of hostilities, then so much the better for us! We will be left with the lingering psychotic hatred North Korea feels for the US. Removal of North Korea's threat to level downtown Seoul at the first sign of hostilities will be a great step forward.
8
The first sign of hostilities would be the leveling of downtown Seoul by the North. You are forgetting that the military dictatorship in North Korea invaded South Korea and that war has never ended to this day. We didn't bomb them in to the stone age. They managed that all by themselves. Mass starvation is not a viable public policy.
Trump's press secretary Srah Huckabee Sanders said that we should question Mr Kim's mental fitness, not Mr. Trump's mental fitness. As an American citizen hoping never to see nuclear war I do question Trump's mental fitness. Anyone who reads Donald Trump's Twitter feed must question Trump's mental fitness to be in charge of a nuclear arsenal of any size. Both Trump and Kim belong in a toddlers' sand box monitored by adults far from any weapons of mass destruction.
39
Perhaps we should also question Ms. Sanders' mental fitness.
26
@ Stu: And her moral fitness!
15
RLW: you're correct in your assumption regarding Trump's mental fitness. Any man or woman who has the gall to state that their nuclear button is bigger than the other guy's or gal's should be removed from office immediately. Geographically, we are far away from N. Korea. S. Korea, on the other hand, is their next door neighbor. They have every right to dillegenty try to negotiate a peaceful solution to their problems. Trump's comment regarding his bigger and more powerful nuclear button is that of a frustrated teenager with a personality disorder. The more I think of Trump's stupid and idiotic comment I realize that the idiot is challenging another maniac with the a nuclear threat. We need to get him out office ASAP.
6