The North Korean nuclear test slipped off the radar screen in the aftermath of the Democratic success on Election Day. President Bush neglected to mention Korea, North or South, while dumping Donald Rumsfeld as secretary of defense and acknowledging difficulties in Iraq, but that’s sure to change when Bush meets China’s President Hu Jintao Saturday at the annual gathering of leaders of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation group in Hanoi.
More than ever, with a Democratic-controlled Congress, Bush needs China to persuade North Korea of the absurdity of its nuclear and missile programs. Hawks in the Pentagon and National Security Council may want to get tough with North Korea, but Democrats clearly see negotiations as the only way to resolve the nuclear standoff.
