U.S. Mints Garish Coin for Trump-Kim Summit That Might Not Happen [View all]

[babylonsister]

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2018/05/u-s-mints-coin-for-trump-kim-summit-that-might-not-happen.html?utm_source=fb&utm_medium=y1&utm_campaign=slate

U.S. Mints Garish Coin for Trump-Kim Summit That Might Not Happen
By Benjamin Hart


There’s significant doubt about whether the high-stakes talks between President Trump and Kim Jong-un, planned for June 12 in Singapore, will actually come off. Kim abruptly threatened to back out of the meeting last week, while Trump — whose strategy for the entire affair consists of winging it — is reportedly (and rightly) worrying that he’s about to get played by the North Korean dictator.

But whatever ends up happening, we’ll always have … this.

Link to tweet

Yes, the U.S. government has gone ahead and minted a gaudy, QVC-ready coin to celebrate a meeting that may not actually take place, and is extremely unlikely to lead to the denuclearization Trump has demanded even if it does.

The coin, of which 250 have been minted, depicts a notably youthful Trump hunched over in optimum dealmaker posture, glaring at a double-chinned Kim, who is referred to as “Supreme Leader,” in a nice bit of deference.

It’s the perfect gift for the #MAGA-minded coin collector who enjoys heavyweight-fight iconography mixed with a little diplomatic wish fulfillment. Now all this summit needs is a Don King–branded nickname. Perhaps “The War in Singapore?”

Hmm, maybe not that one.