No US president has agreed to sit down with a North Korean leader -- until now.
Just by showing up to see Kim Jong-Un, Donald Trump would give his murderous dynasty what it has always craved -- the prestige and propaganda coup of a meeting of equals with the President of the United States.
That is why the talks represent such a massive gamble for Trump and will subject him to intense pressure to deliver a significant breakthrough in return toward the US goal of dismantling North Korea's nuclear arsenal.
Trump accepts offer to meet Kim Jong Un
The difficulty of that assignment is why Trump's predecessors balked a breakthrough encounter the President has now agreed to.