Does President Trump know who the leader of North Korea is?
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Tensions between the United States and North Korea have been steadily rising, with White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer declaring Monday that America is not "taking options off the table" when it comes to handling North Korea's escalating aggression. Only, what might make the situation especially concerning is that President Trump appears to not even know who is in charge of the country, as writer Ana Marie Cox recently pointed out on Twitter:
Trump [...] made two references in the interview to "this gentleman" in North Korea, who he said had "outplayed" both Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. The late North Korean ruler Kim Jong Il died in 2011. His son, Kim Jong Un, is the country's current ruler."But, you know, they've been talking with this gentleman for a long time," Trump said. "You read Clinton’s book, he said, 'Oh, we made such a great peace deal,' and it was a joke. You look at different things over the years with President Obama. Everybody has been outplayed, they've all been outplayed by this gentleman. And we'll see what happens. But I just don't telegraph my moves." [Talking Points Memo]
Last week, Chinese President Xi Jinping had to explain the North Korea conflict to Trump. "After listening for 10 minutes, I realized it's not so easy," Trump said afterward. "I felt pretty strongly that [China] had a tremendous power over North Korea. But it's not what you would think."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
The Week contest: Lubricant larcenyPuzzles and Quizzes
-
Can the UK take any more rain?Today’s Big Question An Atlantic jet stream is ‘stuck’ over British skies, leading to ‘biblical’ downpours and more than 40 consecutive days of rain in some areas
-
The UK expands its Hong Kong visa schemeThe Explainer Around 26,000 additional arrivals expected in the UK as government widens eligibility in response to crackdown on rights in former colony
-
Judge rejects California’s ICE mask ban, OKs ID lawSpeed Read Federal law enforcement agents can wear masks but must display clear identification
-
Lawmakers say Epstein files implicate 6 more menSpeed Read The Trump department apparently blacked out the names of several people who should have been identified
-
Japan’s Takaichi cements power with snap election winSpeed Read President Donald Trump congratulated the conservative prime minister
-
Trump sues IRS for $10B over tax record leaksSpeed Read The president is claiming ‘reputational and financial harm’ from leaks of his tax information between 2018 and 2020
-
Trump, Senate Democrats reach DHS funding dealSpeed Read The deal will fund most of the government through September and the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Rep. Ilhan Omar attacked with unknown liquidSpeed Read This ‘small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work’
