FOREIGN POLICY/NORTH KOREA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “He hectored Mexico’s leader over border wall funding. Lobbed statistics at the Canadian leader without checking his facts. Cajoled the British prime minister to crack down on protesters. Had a tête-à-tête with Russia’s head of state on a whim. Bonded with France’s prime minister over military parades. President Donald Trump rarely conducts business-as-usual diplomacy when he interacts with world leaders. Heading into his expected summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Trump has a record on the international stage that suggests he’ll seek to charm the dictator and look for an agreement that he can pitch as a win — even if it’s more a triumph of appearance than policy. But never bet against the possibility that he’ll just walk away. Trump’s unpredictable negotiating style has been on full display in the run-up to the historic June 12 summit in Singapore. After months spent deriding Kim as ‘Little Rocket Man’ and boasting about the size of his nuclear button, Trump has shifted tone in recent months, suggesting that a friendship was possible and agreeing to an unprecedented meeting.”
-Catherine Lucey and Zeke Miller, “Trump takes his own brand of diplomacy to North Korea summit,” The Associated Press, June 6, 2018 2:24 pm