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Russian President Vladimir Putin has thrown Donald Trump a bone that’s so big and juicy, Trump must feel sorely tempted to chase it—but it’s laced with so much poison that even Trump might calm himself and resist.

The bone, according to the Wall Street Journal, is the proposal of a tripartite summit—just Putin, Trump, and Chinese President Xi Jinping—to plot an ending to the Russia–Ukraine war.

Clearly the idea appeals to Trump’s idealized view of the world: great powers carving their spheres, calling the shots, collecting the spoils, and Donald J. Trump taking his seat—recognized by all—as one of those great powers. No small or medium-size democracies need apply—thus no other pesky Europeans, and certainly no Ukrainians, need take part in determining their fates.

The view is of a piece with Trump’s adoration and envy of men holding absolute power. He basks in their reciprocated respect (whether feigned or genuine), feels his own power elevated, and yearns for more. During the first year of his first term as president, Trump spoke in awe of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un: “He speaks and people sit up at attention. I want my people to do the same.”

He was similarly enamored by the red carpet and sword dance at his first meeting with the Saudi royal family. These were people who ruled a country, the heirs to generations of rulers. By comparison, meeting with elected elites, whose fleeting power depends on the whims of the populace, reminds him all too much of his own limitations.

So a summit of the era’s three great men—Putin, Xi, and Trump! That’s the stuff of history: like Churchill, Stalin, and........

© Slate