I hope all the compliments Trump has bestowed on Kim are part of reeling Kim in....
Of
course they are. Look, Trump already went down the very harsh rhetoric path, to the point where people thought he was nuts, and going to provoke an actual nuclear war with NK. "Trump is a warmonger who will get us all killed!"
But after that mountain fractured, we got the upper hand. When Kim started making noises that were different, and less confrontational, that's when Trump (very, very rightly) decided to depersonalize the communications, and use a carrot rather than a stick. If a verifiable deal doesn't happen, you want it to be because the parties just can't agree,
not because Un's ego is hurt and he refuses a deal out of spite.
This kind of stuff is Negotiations 101. There is a time to bang on the table and threaten, and then comes a time when you offer to get the other guy a cup of coffee, and then there's a time when you bring the donuts, ask about the other side's kids, and thank them for working with you. Maybe you ultimately reach a deal, and maybe you don't, but you should never
ever let personal acrimony or emotion be what kills a deal.
I've sealed a lot of negotiations with plaintiffs and their attorneys by giving a "heartfelt" (not really) statement about how I understand their feelings, blah blah blah. Because ultimately, a little bit of butt-kissing is of no consequence if you get that deal done.