There is an old saying that goes something like this: “ Nobody needs a war more than a politician who is low in the polls.”

And boy are Trump’s numbers down! Multiple surveys have found Trump to have the lowest approval ratings of any President in the last 70 years at this point in his presidency.

Of course Donald Trump does not actually want war with North Korea. But he does want to distract Americans from the serious consequences he and his regime face from the ever-tightening noose otherwise known as the Mueller investigation.

So he resorts to name-calling, something he is particularly good at. Calling North Korean leader Kim Jong-un “Rocket Man” follows in a long line of pejoratives he has used to smear his opponents. There is “Crooked Hillary,” “Little Marco,” “Lyin’ Ted,” “Crazy Bernie,” and “Low-energy Jeb,” just to name a few of Trump’s greatest hits.

But Kim Jong-un is an unknown entity. It doesn’t appear he is taking Trump’s taunt lightly.

Today North Korea’s foreign minister, Ri Yong-ho, accused the United States of declaring war on his country.

“Since the United States declared war on our country, we will have every right to make counter-measures, including the right to shoot down United States strategic bombers even when they are not inside the airspace border of our country,” said Yong-ho.

There is another old saying … “Loose lips sinks ships.” In other words, beware of loose talk.

A spokesman for the head of the UN correctly warned that fiery talk could lead to fatal misunderstandings.

Trump may think strong talk against North Korea is prime meat for his base and a distraction from FBI special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into his links with Russia. It could also inadvertently lead to World War III.

It is way past time for the adults in the White House to reign in our toddler-in-chief. This is not a game. This is not a reality TV show.

Photo | express.co.uk