Clinton, Trump, and a Nuclear North Korea: The Two-Minute Version
North Korea's Nukes Keep Getting Stronger
On Oct. 9, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will square off in the second presidential debate. Halfway around the world, Kim Jong Un will savor the 10 anniversary of North Korea’s first nuclear test. At some point in the next four to eight years, two of these three people are likely to clash.
This month’s nuclear test by the Kim dynasty, its biggest yet, and its test of a new kind of high-powered engine for long-range rockets have brought fresh urgency to the problem of North Korea, but the standoff with the rogue regime is depressingly old: Kim tests Washington, which leans on China, which sometimes leans on Kim, who appears to be playing a different game altogether. The Kim in question (Il Sung, Jong Il, or Jong Un) has changed over the decades, but the cycle is largely the same.