Is there a method to Trump's madness when it comes to North Korea's Kim?

US President Donald Trump often sounds more desperate for a deal than North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The latest example came on Monday, when Trump insisted that North Korea had not tested ballistic missiles earlier this month — contradicting not only his own national security adviser but also the prime minister of Japan.

After some speculation about Kim’s motivation, Trump doubled down on an earlier tweet. “All I know is that there have been no nuclear tests,” he said. “There have been no ballistic missiles going out, no long-range missiles going out.”

There are good reasons to worry about this. It’s