President Trump joked during the summit in Singapore this week that North Korean state TV was even more lavish in its praise for that country's leader than Fox News is for him—and that a news anchor who came up on screen while he watched should get a job on U.S. television. Trump really does seem to know the value of having a TV network that will never criticize him, and that has millions of fans whose very identities seem tied up in their viewership.

He also knows the value in rewarding that loyalty, which is why he paid an "unannounced" visit—he announced it shortly before on Twitter—to the Fox & Friends set on the White House lawn Friday morning:

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Donald Trump walking down the White House lawn so he can make a surprise live appearance on his favorite TV show is just completely bonkers pic.twitter.com/3VzN44TlKQ — Amber Jamieson (@ambiej) June 15, 2018

This was a true spectacle, as a chattering horde of reporters from traditional outlets was swept aside as Trump, like an aircraft carrier of clicks and views and advertising dollars, rumbled toward the Fox setup. It was a neat illustration of how Trump has worked the media since jumping into politics, using the thirst of mainstream outlets to his advantage but always heading home to friendly shores to really spew his lines.

Even as he sidled up to Steve Doocy on the Fox set, Trump managed to rattle off one more bit of unreality, as he once again claimed that his administration is separating families at the border because of some nondescript law passed by Democrats. He repeated the lie in the subsequent interview:

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President @realDonaldTrump weighs in on immigration debate pic.twitter.com/qhlvUdSeZW — FOX & friends (@foxandfriends) June 15, 2018

Notice even Trump, the most shameless public liar in the history of (at least) modern politics, struggled to swallow his own bullshit here. The fact is that the president and his attorney general, Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III, have enacted the "zero-tolerance policy" which sees all border-crossers criminally charged and, as a result, sees children ripped away from parents. Sessions announced the policy and has repeatedly defended it, sometimes on Biblical grounds. But his boss is too much of a coward to take responsibility for his own actions, which have resulted in many young children undergoing perhaps the most traumatic experience possible: being torn away from their parents as everyone involved is essentially incarcerated. Instead, Trump tries to blame Democrats.

The North Korean Connection wasn't over quite yet, though. Asked if he'd host the country's dictator, Kim Jong-un, at the White House, Trump repeatedly praised Kim—who routinely murders perceived rivals, including his own half-brother, in reportedly ghastly ways—as a strong and tough leader.

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Trump says he wants people to treat him like North Koreans treat Kim Jung Un.



Really. pic.twitter.com/C0K7awpMIV — Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) June 15, 2018

The President of the United States just suggested he wanted the American public to treat him like North Korean citizens treat their murderous dictator. That explains the murals. Trump is never more authoritarian than when discussing other authoritarians, treating their power as something to be praised in-and-of-itself and excusing away their nasty habit of destroying people's lives to maintain it. Trump even seemed to joke, when Doocy said Kim had "fired" three generals recently, that Kim had actually executed them. No wonder he saluted one—the guy was a Somebody, what difference is it who he works for?

We have discussed before how the infrastructure is in place for this president to push for an autocracy. It will be up to the American people whether they want to treat their president—who, for now, works for them—like a Supreme Leader.

Jack Holmes Politics Editor Jack Holmes is the Politics Editor at Esquire, where he writes daily and edits the Politics Blog with Charles P Pierce.

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