By Erick Erickson

Just over 17 years ago, then President Bill Clinton claimed he had structured a deal with North Korea that would prevent this day from ever arriving. But, to be fair to President Clinton, he had Jimmy Carter undermining him every step of the way. For Republicans trying to blame President Clinton, President Carter must own some of the blame. History will note that President Carter went to North Korea of his own volition and sabotaged any legitimate deal we could have gotten.

But history also shows that for the last seventeen years multiple American Presidential Administrations have dithered as the North Koreas plotted a nuclear weapons strategy. Whether by distraction, denial, or delusion, three consecutive American Presidents let this occur.

Now it falls to President Trump to deal with it. For his part, the President sternly warned North Korea that he would deliver a fiery response if North Korea threatened the United States. North Korea then prompted threatened to nuke Guam. Thus far, President Trump has been quiet. That silence will not be able to last.

I know there are those of you who have heartburn at the thought of President Trump, not Hillary Clinton, being the one with the button and the nuclear football. I know there are those who wish it was not so. I would hope those people would honestly assess why President Trump is now President instead of continuing to blame Russia for stealing the election. It appears that not only will these people not honestly assess Hillary Clinton’s and their loss, but that they will double down both on contempt for those with whom they have political disagrees and denial of what actually happened.

Though the left can construct alternate realities in their minds, Hillary Clinton fan fiction, protests, and clever tweets, the reality as the sun rises this morning is that Donald Trump is President, Hillary Clinton is not, and President Trump must now deal with the failures of his predecessors. We should all also be mindful that the very rhetoric used by Bill Clinton to assure the world North Korea would never get nukes was then used by Barack Obama to assure us Iran would never get nukes.

President Trump, in dealing with the messes of his predecessors regarding North Korea, should take a very hard look at the Iranian deal lest a future President have to play clean up there.

In the meantime, all of us should be in prayer for our President. We should pray that he listens to the wisdom of competent advisors and does that which is truly in the best interests of our nation. Likewise, those of you who are convinced the man will go nuclear pre-emptively and are spending the morning in the fetal position bed wetting, you should understand you and your contempt for Americans who disagree with you politically had a great deal to do with Hillary Clinton losing and Donald Trump winning. And the more Google fires employees for thoughtcrimes and the left champions the persecution of conservatives, Christians, and anyone with common sense, the more likely it is Donald Trump will get re-elected.

This whole presidency that now must respond to this dangerous situation has far less to do with Russia and far more to do with the left’s abject hatred and contempt for their fellow Americans costing them the trust of the people.