Trump and Kim: The Movies

June 14, 2018 3:55 p.m. ET

This column doesn’t think much good will come from this week’s summit meeting, but is eager to be proven wrong. Writing for the Spectator, Roger Kimball makes the case for optimism: “I have an important real-estate tip to pass along: beach-front property in North Korea. Keep your eye on it.”

He’s responding to Mr. Trump’s decision to play a promotional video for Mr. Kim in Singapore showing the possibilities for a prosperous North Korea, and the President’s related decision to describe how valuable the country’s real estate could be.

Here’s an excerpt from the official White House transcript of Mr. Trump’s post-summit press conference:

Q …Kim Jong Un is saying he’s wanting a brighter future with prosperity for his people, yet we know they’ve lived under oppression. You showed him this video of what the future can be like. But do you have an idea specifically of the model that you would like to go towards? Economically, is he open to more economic freedom?

THE PRESIDENT: Yeah, it’s a good question. So you saw a tape today, and that, I think, was done really well. But that was done at the highest level of future development. I told him, you may not want this. You may want to do a much smaller version of this. I mean, you’re going to do something. But you may want to do a smaller version…

But that was a version of what could happen, what could take place. As an example, they have great beaches. You see that whenever they’re exploding their cannons into the ocean, right? I said, “Boy, look at the view. Wouldn’t that make a great condo behind?” And I explained, I said, “You know, instead of doing that, you could have the best hotels in the world right there.” Think of it from a real estate perspective. You have South Korea, you have China, and they own the land in the middle. How bad is that, right? It’s great… I tell you what — he looked at that tape, he looked at that iPad, and I’m telling you they really enjoyed it, I believe.

Much of the press corps found Mr. Trump’s approach to be bizarre, if not laughable. But Mr. Kimball doesn’t see it that way. He writes:

The video starkly outlines two very different futures for North Korea. The blighted black-and-white past of tyranny and deprivation, on the one hand, or the technicolor future of innovation, freedom, and prosperity.

It’s a cheesy piece of work, no doubt. The media frothed that the video looked like propaganda from the DPRK. They have a point. But I think they miss the significance. The video does look a bit like some of the propaganda videos emitted by North Korea. But what if that was the point? What if that is just the sort of thing that Kim likes or is likely to respond to?

Now we have the other video,from Mr. Kim’s own regime. Just as this column and others feared, Mr. Trump seems to have given the dictator a propaganda coup. But the Kim video suggests either that he may actually be open to change, or that he is risking unintended consequences within his walled kingdom.

CNN notes of Kim’s new production:

It was likely some North Koreans’ first glimpse of the world outside their tightly restricted borders, including possibly jaw-dropping images of the glittering Singapore skyline.

In contrast to the usually dour programming on the official KCTV news channel, the footage of Kim strolling by swimmers on the Marina Bay Sands rooftop pool or the lush indoor gardens of Sentosa Island would likely be an unusual sight for North Korean viewers.

The country’s state media had already highlighted Kim’s approval of his host country — KCNA said on Wednesday Kim was impressed with the “clean and beautiful” city.

“He is going to learn a lot from the good knowledge and experience of Singapore in various fields in the future,” state media said…

Kim also paid an unannounced visit to Singapore’s booming port, the footage showed.

The documentary’s heavy focus on Singapore, a prosperous capitalist nation, represents a notable change in tone. North Korean media, tightly controlled by the state, typically refrains from showcasing foreign advancements.

Is it in the interest of a communist dictator to show his imprisoned citizens a prosperous world they have never known?

***

Noteworthy

Annals of Swamp Draining
“H&R Block Falls Most Ever as Simpler Tax Code Weakens Forecast,” Bloomberg, June 13

***

In Other News

Out on a Limb
“

Michael Cohen

Is About to Flip on Trump or Is Bluffing or Is Maybe Doing Something Else, Various Reports Say,” Slate, June 13

Too Much Collusion?
“Russian official urges love at World Cup after backlash,” Associated Press, June 14

Another Underreported Triumph in the War on Drugs
“Powell Doesn’t Get High,” The Wall Street Journal, June 13

It Sounds Delicious, But Is It Healthy?
“Who’s that selling steaks off a truck? It’s Amazon,” Associated Press, June 14

Certainly Healthier than Expected
“‘Dead’ husband returns after Japan police send wrong body,” Seattle Times, June 13

***

This column will not be published on Friday but will return on Monday.

***

Follow James Freeman on Twitter.

Subscribe to the Best of the Web email with one click.

To suggest items, please email best@wsj.com.

(Lisa Rossi helps compile Best of the Web. Thanks to Miguel Rakiewicz, Ethel Fenig, Melissa Stone, Mark Zoeller and Tony Lima.)