Remember, there has been no more persistent critic and aggressive opponent of the North Korean regime than Bolton. The North Koreans know it, and that might make a difference. Republicans would have never accepted a deal made by President Barack Obama, but by Bolton? I think Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) spoke for most Republicans when he said on Sunday that “the North Koreans know, without a doubt, that John Bolton sees their nuclear program as a threat to the United States and will strongly advise the president to use military force if he has to, which means it’s less likely we will.” Still, there are some credible voices that are alarmed about how much influence Bolton will soon have. As the astute Susan B. Glasser wrote Monday, “Bolton is … personally belligerent and professionally bellicose, and soon to be the closest adviser to an inexperienced president on how to handle all the world’s challenges.” With that said, if Bolton signs off on a deal with North Korea, it will say something to even his fiercest critics who know him as someone with a hard edge, with a bias for ballistics and who never takes the dovish way out.