“I probably have a very good relationship with Kim Jong Un,” President Trump told the Wall Street Journal, contrary to literally everything he has said about the North Korean dictator. “I have relationships with people. I think you people are surprised,” the president added. Despite his claim to a possibly good relationship with Kim, Trump has been on-record as calling the isolated nation’s leader a “maniac,” a “bad dude,” “short and fat,” and giving him the nickname “rocket man.” In return, Kim has repeatedly mocked Trump, at one point calling him a “mentally deranged U.S. dotard.” In the same WSJ interview, Trump suggested his combative comments about Kim are part of a grander strategy: “You’ll see that a lot with me and then all of the sudden somebody’s my best friend. I could give you 20 examples. You could give me 30. I’m a very flexible person.”
President Trump shifts his tone on North Korea and signals he's ready to talk with "Little Rocket Man" https://t.co/kxKnRiFd60 pic.twitter.com/zYG1COSCiD
— CNN (@CNN) January 11, 2018