President Donald Trump’s mid-August declaration that he would downsize American participation in joint drills with South Korea due to his “very good” relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been seized upon by some of his critics as evidence of his favor for dictators over Washington’s traditional democratic allies. Whatever one thinks of Trump’s approach to negotiations with Kim — as well as his past compliments for him, Russia’s Vladimir Putin and China’s Xi Jinping — this statement and the accompanying downsizing of exercises should not be seen as a reflection of a shift in U.S. priorities under Trump toward authoritarian leaders. Given its timing, and the president’s precarious domestic situation with midterm elections on Nov. 3, this should instead be seen as a political Hail Mary, designed to get Trump’s dealmaking back in the headlines and push his Iran quagmire — not to mention the staggering price increases that conflict has caused — into the background.
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