NORTH KOREA & NUKES -- IS CHANGE ON THE HORIZON?

[Duchess]

image-conscious president told reporters, "I think you probably broke the all-time-in-history television rating for 3 o'clock in the morning."

Oh for fucks sake.

He said this too - “We want to thank Kim Jong-un, who really was excellent to these three incredible people,” Trump says of dictator who detained Americans.

He's a fuckin' moron.

[Maggot]

Perhaps Donald could have a "beer summit" .

[HairOfTheDog]

Will They or Won't They?

North Korea abruptly postponed tomorrow's high-level talks with South Korea to protest a joint South Korean-United States Air Force drill in the Korean Peninsula.

According to Korean media, Kim also warned that the historic summit meeting between North Korea’s leader and President Trump scheduled for June 12^th could be jeopardized.

North Korea (and China) reportedly want U.S. military out of the peninsula as a condition of any nuclear deal.

I wonder if this will be yet another case of North Korea pulling the rug out from a potential nuclear agreement, as was the case under President Bill Clinton, President George W. Bush, and President Barack Obama. All three of the former Presidents were able to get hostages released from North Korea, but didn't get far in terms of denuclearizing the country.

Refs:
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/15/world...v=top-news
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/17/world...hreat.html

[Midwest Spy]

*singing in my best Sanford & Townes voice*

‘You pulled the rug, right out from under my feet.’

[HairOfTheDog]

I saw new National Security Advisor John Bolton interviewed on Face the Nation this weekend. He was much more subdued than he was as a frequent FOX guest.

Bolton has previously advocated for military attack of North Korea and overthrowing Kim.

Near the end of the interview, Bolton raised my eyebrows when he said the U.S. was going to apply the Libya model of denuclearization. Does he really want negotiations to move forward? If I were Kim, I’d say “fuck that”, which is essentially what Kim did yesterday in response to Bolton’s comment.

Today, Sarah Sanders contradicted Bolton’s comment and said she’s not aware that the Libya model is in play. Later today, Trump said the North Korea denuclearization negotiations would not be comparable to the Libya plan. He said that Kim would continue to lead the country with a lot of protection from the U.S. if a deal was reached, and that North Korea would flourish economically like South Korea.

This administration really needs to gets its shit together and have a shared strategy before they expect anyone to consider entering into serious agreements with the U.S.

[Duchess]

This administration really needs to gets its shit together

Sometimes I think to myself just how much more dangerous they could be if they did have their shit together. They consistently contradict each other, all down the line. It almost always seem to be a very chaotic atmosphere.

[Blindgreed1]

This administration really needs to gets its shit together

Sometimes I think to myself just how much more dangerous they could be if they did have their shit together. They consistently contradict each other, all down the line. It almost always seem to be a very chaotic atmosphere.

Every admin seems to have a chaotic atmosphere. Just look at the "before and after" photos of presidents past. That shit takes it's toll on the body.

[HairOfTheDog]

Well, no big shocker that the North Korean denuclearization summit has been cancelled.

First, National Security Advisor Bolton either unknowingly or passive-aggressively threatened Kim by invoking the "Libya model" in a televised interview.

Then, after Trump walked back Bolton's comment, publicly stated that he was open to phased instead of "immediate and total" denuclearization, cancelled a military exercise in the peninsula to appease Kim, and again profusely praised Kim..............VP Pence directly threatened Kim by invoking the "Libya model" in a televised interview.

Inconsistent messaging and idiotic threats, assuming this was ever anything more than the latest for-show installment of The Real Whitehouse of DC.

President Trump's rationale for the cancellation is that North Korean leadership responded to Pence's threat by publicly calling Pence "a stupid, ignorant political dummy" and essentially accepted Pence's invitation to a nuclear war if North Korea didn't capitulate to the U.S. That's pretty weak supposed rationale, considering the constant name calling from our President and the fact that Kim and Trump have publicly insulted each other worse.

It's clear to me the U.S. did not have a solid strategy, negotiating points, definition of 'denuclearization', or groundwork laid for a June summit of this magnitude to result in a 'win'. That's more likely the reason for the summit cancellation.

So, to date....Kim's managed to get praise, concessions, and legitimization from the U.S. In turn, the U.S. got three hostages released from North Korea.

In Trump's cancellation letter to Kim, he left the door open for future talks. That's good.

South Korean President Moon was elected on a platform of re-unification; this derailment has gotta be a big setback for him. But, hopefully he and Kim will continue to make progress among themselves.

[Duchess]

I never thought it was going to happen but I am very happy the hostages were released. That's something positive and I'm really glad they were able to come home.

...but, but, but what about the special coins?

[HairOfTheDog]

...but, but, but what about the special coins?

They're being placed on the shelf previously reserved for the Nobel Peace Prize. ")

[Duchess]

That was a perfect response.

[Duchess]

HotD, the coin is now a "Deal of the Day" at the White House gift shop.

[HairOfTheDog]

HotD, the coin is now a "Deal of the Day" at the White House gift shop.

Jesus Christ.



President Trump's lack of knowledge, lack of strategy, and propensity to count his chickens before they're hatched is what the release of this coin commemorates. Foolishness on global display.

I just saw that the White House online gift shop site crashed due to people rushing to buy this piece of history.... for the new low low price of only $19.95!

I hope it wasn't you buying in bulk Duchess, though I guess the coins would be fun stocking stuffers for trolling the never-Trumpers and Trump-worshippers alike. ")

The 'Dear Kim' break-up/cancellation letter was surreal too. I seriously thought it was a spoof from the Onion when I first read it. But, it's for real.

[Maggot]

I've always hated those stupid colorized coins. I also think Teflon Don sounds better than Teflon Bill.

[HairOfTheDog]

Out of interest, how many times with other Presidencies were Korean War remains returned by North Korea and when did the two leaders last cross into the DMK? Out of interest I am genuinely interested to know. Is this something that normally happens or something a little more special and unusual?

^ Quoted from post in the TRUMP PRESIDENCY thread.

Trump is the first American President to have such a meeting with the North Korean President. In that respect, it was special. Whether it was good special, bad special, or neutral special remains to be seen, in my opinion. That will depend on the outcomes and requires some time to tell.

Thus far, Kim has benefited greatly in terms of being legitimized on the world stage. The meeting with Trump also opened the door for China and Russia to more openly collaborate with North Korea in regards to their shared goal of getting the U.S. military out of the peninsula.

I think Trump benefited from the meeting in terms of showing a willingness to address conflicts of interest directly with North Korea, helping to de-escalate tensions between the North and South (at least temporarily), and getting some hostages and potential remains released to the U.S. again. I don't like the way Trump went about it on the public stage and think it could backfire. However, I do support his opening the channels of communication between the U.S. and North Korea.

There is still no agreed-to definition of 'denuclearization' nor any formal commitment or agreement as to the steps, timelines, and verifications to achieve it <-- all of which is the U.S.'s stated objective. So, it remains to be seen whether Trump's been successful with North Korea or not.

There were reportedly some satellite images picked up by intelligence showing the dismantling of an old NK rocket launcher last week. But, then, this week U.S. intelligence picked up images that they suspect show a new nuclear missile site being developed in NK.

[HairOfTheDog]

In regards to remains, there have been 229 sets returned to the United States from Korea under previous administrations.

55 potential sets were just returned under the Trump Administration. The return date kept being delayed by Kim, but they did arrive the other day and were honored with a ceremony held by VP Pence.

Defense Secretary Mattis advised caution when the remains were en-route; he said we don't know who's in the boxes. Today, it was reported that only one dog tag was included with the 55 boxes.

So, it will likely take years to determine the identifications and whether the remains are those of American Korean War soldiers.

[aussiefriend]

I don't care what Duch says, "aussie, calm down etc", THAT Kim Jung Un scares the shit out of me. I always feel so so sad for poor Otto, my God what awful things did he endure. May he rest in peace. I see those pictures of him before he is being taken away and he is so frightened and distraught it is devastating. If I was President, there is no way I would have met with that creep.

[Duchess]

Kim played trump like a fiddle. I'll be surprised if any of the remains are Americans, he sent animal bones last time yet we have trump and that twat pence out there thanking him profusely. Jesus. Kim is smarter than trump.  

[HairOfTheDog]

Yesterday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo outlined his next trip to North Korea.

However, today, President Trump cancelled it publicly, by tweet. He said progress towards denuclearization was not being made. In a second tweet, Trump said he didn't think China was helping much anymore due to trade disputes with the U.S.

North Korea said the talks had 'derailed' over demands they reveal secret nuclear facilities. Several countries' intelligence agencies have reported that NK continues moving forward with nuclear development.

Story: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-north...SKCN1L91XJ

[Love Child]

Hey he is quick to turnaround!




*Trying not to sound like a hater