Throughout Trump’s presidency, the foreign policy establishment decried his departure from the norms of American diplomacy. Trump was a bull in a china shop, King Kong in New York City, and a loudmouthed Ugly American offending all the truly civilized people of the world.

Somehow, though, the world survived and even thrived under his foreign policy leadership. American deaths in Afghanistan dropped to zero. Russia remained within its borders. Peace between Arabs and Israelis broke out. The US border saw increasingly fewer illegal crossings. The US Embassy was moved to Jerusalem without the predicted violence. Our avowed enemies feared us.

Then Biden came to power and restored the “proper” order of things. America withdrew from Afghanistan amid a reign of terror that continues; Russia, following its actions under Obama in which it invaded Ukraine and took Crimea, invaded Ukraine again in an attempt to seize the whole country. Hundreds of thousands have died so far. Millions of illegals from around the world have flooded into the country. China is rattling its sabers. The US is shipping billions of dollars to Iran, which is using the money to plan and execute bloody atrocities in Israel.

Good times. The adults are back in charge.

Trump may talk like a spoiled teenager–and admit it, folks, he does often speak like a spoiled brat–but he was obviously on to something with his policies.

And that something is pretty simple: we may not admire it when individuals care only about themselves and act selfishly, but as a matter of fact, that is what national leaders are supposed to do (for the most part) when it comes to representing their countries. America First is not the policy of some deranged narcissistic xenophobic lunatic–it is literally the job description for the President of the United States.

Since at least the Cold War, and for many Establishment types even during the Cold War, this simple truth has been forgotten.

It is true that it behooves us not to be bullies on the world stage if we can help it. After all, we are stronger when we are backed by friends and allies. We can use carrots and sticks, and be loyal friends and allies to those who are loyal to us. But the guiding principle must be looking out for America’s interests. And those interests are defined by defending the civilization of which we are the leading part. America First, Western Civilization next, unsavory but useful allies third, and to hell with the rest of the world.

We engage in Europe and Asia because our prosperity is built on trade, and trade thrives during peacetime. We are in the Middle East because the world’s 2nd-most precious resource–after civilization itself–is oil. We defend Israel because it is the sole outpost of Western Civilization in the region and if it falls the next victim will be European civilization and, of course, us. We defend Japan and Taiwan because the center of gravity in the world economy is in Asia, and they are both essentially Western countries now.

The foreign policy establishment–especially but not only the Democrat-led establishment–has forgotten that the goal is not to appease our enemies but to defend our people, economy, and civilization. Iran, Hamas, Syria, and to a lesser extent China and Russia, are enemies of our civilization.

Act like it. The wars in Ukraine and Israel are both due to the inherent weakness and appeasement policies of the foreign policy establishment. They somehow believe that our enemies dislike us because we aren’t nice enough to them. The opposite is the case.

Machiavelli famously said “It is better to be feared than loved, if one cannot be both.” That is a basic principle of foreign policy. You can try to be both, but if you have to choose, choose being feared.

Biden’s defenders will insist that his response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine proves his willingness to stand up to our enemies; perhaps there is some truth to that.

But it is truer still that we have to defend Ukraine because Biden convinced the world during the retreat from Afghanistan that the US would endure any humiliation rather than strike back against aggression. Putin invaded Ukraine twice–during Obama’s administration and now Biden’s. He knew better than to poke Donald Trump the bear.

I prefer my strongmen to be Churchills and not Trumps. I cringe and his crudeness and narcissism and think he is a genuine bully when he punches down on his political opponents.

I also know that those very traits made him an effective foreign policy president. The world was made much better by his policies, and much worse due to Biden’s reversal of them. Churchill, when it came to muscular policies defending his nation was not much different than Trump; he was a smoother, more urbane speaker. He used a rapier, not a sledgehammer when insulting his adversaries. But he was no less tough.

Prior to World War II Churchill was seen as the Trump of his time, and the Neville Chamberlain-types were the “adults in the room.” Those adults gave us the Second World War. Churchill was right and the establishment wrong. Millions died learning that lesson.

The same holds true today. When it comes to dealing with international politics, countries like the US, which have power, money, and influence, simply must be muscular and assertive. That doesn’t mean we must go to war, as the establishment did countless times in countries we could “safely” invade. But it must mean that we can credibly threaten it and scare the bejeezus out of countries like Iran.

Remember when Trump killed Qasem Soleimani of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards? The establishment quailed, believing this would start a war. Ironic fear, as Iran has been waging war against us for decades as the establishment appeased them continually. Trump didn’t start a war; he struck back and intimidated Iran by doing so.

It wasn’t then that Iran launched this invasion against Israel–it was just after Biden handed Iran billions of dollars in exchange for hostages. It was our weakness, not strength that launched this new round of barbarism and terror. We got a few American hostages back in exchange for billions, and now even more Americans are hostage to Iranian proxies.

Weakness is not a policy; it is an abdication of responsibility and an invitation to worse violence.

It’s time to retire the “adults in the room” and find a new Churchill or, God help us, Trump to inspire fear again in our enemies.