Donald Trump's future lies on Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, and Kim Jong Un

                                                                           

Kim Jong Un and North Korea's nukes, Vladimir Putin and Russian election activities, Xi Jinping, China tariffs, and new talks on a trade deal dominated President Donald Trump's four-day trip to Asia for a G20 summit in Japan and a meeting with Kim at the border of North and South Korea border.

And many of these same issues will linger in the months ahead as Trump seeks re-election, in part by claiming a new kind of foreign policy leadership. He hopes that includes a new trade deal with China and a new nuclear deal with North Korea, each of which he believes will help his domestic situation in the United States.

"The leaders of virtually every country that I met at the G-20 congratulated me on our great economy," Trump tweeted at one point during the week, spotlighting another campaign issue. "We have the best economy anywhere in the world, with GREAT & UNLIMITED potential looking into the future!"

Democrats, meanwhile, will try to cast Trump as an erratic leader who is too friendly with autocrats without getting anything in return. The Asia trip, they said, underscored Trump's weaknesses, including a tariff policy that hurts farmers and consumers. 

Democratic strategist Jesse Ferguson noted that Trump also spent a lot of time attacking domestic political opponents during his Asia sojourn, even in the presence of foreign leaders.

"Trump should reimburse American taxpayers for his trip overseas," Ferguson said. 

A look at parts of Trump's agenda during his brief trip to Seoul and Osaka, Japan
                                                               

During a meeting on the sidelines of the G-20 in Osaka, Trump and Xi agreed to re-start negotiations on a new trade agreement that had collapsed in May.

As part of that deal, Trump agreed to hold off on new tariffs targeting Chinese products. A new agreement would also void existing tariffs, ending a trade war that Democrats plan to use against Trump at election time.

Thanks to China's retaliatory tariffs, "manufacturers and especially soy farmers are hurting," Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg said during last week's debate. "Tariffs are taxes."

Trump defends his tariffs, saying they brought the Chinese to the bargaining topic and have encouraged more people to buy more American products. Most economists disagree with him, however.