Summary
President Donald Trump's recurring criticism of his predecessor is that he just didn't know how to make a deal.
Trump's record in Congress is even less impressive.
First, the meeting was announced with great fanfare, with Trump soon lavishing praise on Kim Jong Un. Agreeing to the meeting was an enormous symbolic concession to the North Koreans, while getting almost nothing in return.
Trump got excited enough to start hyping the prospects for a breakthrough agreement despite little evidence of any movement in the North Korean position.
Trump has been even more ham-handed in his dealings with China.
Beijing quickly shut down contact with the United States and, humiliatingly, Trump had to walk back his comments in a phone call with President Xi Jinping.
Trump himself seems to switch gears repeatedly. After his administration announced that it would punish ZTE, a huge Chinese tech company that committed serious trade violations, Trump suddenly changed his mind, citing concern for the impact on Chinese jobs.
As talks fail, deals collapse and negotiations founder, Trump continues to tweet triumphantly about his great success.
...