President Trump should be taking a victory lap. In recent days, Kim Jung Un has backed away from his earlier threat to bomb Guam, according to Pyongyang's state-run media.

At the same time, China has (finally) leveled extremely damaging sanctions against North Korea, banning imports of coal, iron and seafood.

Are these positive developments an accident? No, it appears that the Trump White House has changed the calculus by the leaders of those two countries, and that the president has had a plan for confronting the hermit kingdom, after all.

Unfortunately, as has happened all too often, the White House, offering initially only a tepid condemnation of the racist attack in Charlottesville, has stepped on its own good news.

Obama knew that Pyongyang had moved faster and farther towards nuclear capability thanhesitate to use force if provoked.

This important first step was accomplished during President Xi Jinping’s visit to Mar-al-Lago in April. That was the first meeting for the two heads of state, the critical “first read.” The two leaders enjoyed a dinner and conversation with wives and associates, which was abruptly interrupted when President Trump excused himself to meet with his security advisors.

The United States had just bombed Syria, in retaliation for the Bashar Al-Assad’s use of chemical weapons on his own people. The strike was unexpected, targeted and it sent an unequivocal message to President Xi: there is a new Commander in Chief in town who, unlike Obama, would use military force to back up his threats. No more meaningless red lines; if Trump promised retaliation, as he