President Donald J. Trump promised victory over the potbellied dictator from North Korea, Kim Jong-Un, on Sunday afternoon.
Being nice to Rocket Man hasn't worked in 25 years, why would it work now? Clinton failed, Bush failed, and Obama failed. I won't fail.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 1, 2017
This message comes after President Trump stated earlier that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was "wasting his time" in negotiating with the rotund rabble rouser.
I told Rex Tillerson, our wonderful Secretary of State, that he is wasting his time trying to negotiate with Little Rocket Man...
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 1, 2017
...Save your energy Rex, we'll do what has to be done!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 1, 2017
Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal reported that Sec. of State Tillerson said that the U.S. government has a "couple" of direct lines of communication with North Korea.
President Trump has been remarkably consistent in his hardline stance against North Korea since 1999.
As President Trump noted, President Clinton failed to prevent the North Koreans from acquiring the tools needed to build a nuclear weapon after handing them a $4 billion aid package.
In 1994 President Clinton falsely predicted, "This agreement will help achieve a longstanding and vital American objective -- an end to the threat of nuclear proliferation on the Korean Peninsula."
A few years later in 1999, after evidence North Koreans were developing the capability to build a nuclear weapon, Trump told the late Tim Russert his opinion how to deal with the North Korean communist government. Trump said the best solution to deal with North Korea was a proactive approach with all options on the table.
It would appear in Trump's mind, that all the negotiating possible has been done.
At the United Nations in September, President Trump said the United States would "totally destroy" North Korea if America or any of its allies were attacked.
This statement was praised by allies such as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel.
In over 30 years in my experience with the UN, I never heard a bolder or more courageous speech.
— Benjamin Netanyahu (@netanyahu) September 19, 2017
Even liberal Harvard Professor Alan Dershowitz showed support for President Trump's shift away from appeasement and towards stronger language and action against North Korea.
In August, he told Fox and Friends, "I think that probably at this point President Trump has more credibility," than previous Presidents in regards to North Korea.
Not surprisingly, many liberals in the media and left wing politicians condemn President Trump's new approach to Kim Jong-un. It is worth noting that President Trump has already successfully dealt with North Korea in other matters, such as bringing home American hostage Otto Warmbier.
Warmbier was a college student visiting North Korea when he allegedly stole government property in 2015. He was then sentenced to 15 years of hard labor by the brutal regime. After just months of Trump negotiating with North Korea, the regime agreed to release Warmbier back to the States.
When he arrived stateside, he was unconscious. The boy died shortly after coming home in June 2017. Autopsy reports showed that the American student had been severely tortured and mutilated by his captors.
Had President Obama utilized the harsh rhetoric and "peace through strength" diplomacy as President Trump is doing, this tragedy may have been avoided and he may have been released earlier. When asked if President Obama could have done more to save the hostage the 22 year old's father Fred Warmbier told the press "I think the results speak for themselves."
Warmbier's father continued saying, "When Otto was first taken, we were advised by the past administration to take a low profile while they worked to obtain his release. We did so without result. Earlier this year, Cindy and I decided the time for strategic patience was over."
President Trump echoed this sentiment later saying, “The era of strategic patience with the North Korean regime has failed. ... Frankly, that patience is over" during a joint appearance with South Korean President Moon Jae-in.
It is unclear what the next step will be in dealing with North Korea.
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