Republican Party elites have been trying to sell Rubio as the anti-Trump. Yet on at least one important dimension the Florida Senator would be a far worse president than Trump.

Despite making blowhard claims about being the campaign’s most militaristic candidate, Trump is not disposed to get America into another foreign conflict. And a president makes no more important decision than war or peace. Unlike most domestic matters, war puts lives at stake. For Americans and foreigners alike. Moreover, when conflicts go bad, their consequences overspread the nation and cascade globally. The Donald may be dismissive, even insulting, when talking about other nations’ leaders, but he seems to prefer dickering with rather than killing other people. While making a deal may not always be the best choice, it usually is far better than bombing, invading, and occupying other nations, the staples of recent U.S. policy.

Indeed, Trump, despite his bluster and exaggeration, gets much right about foreign policy. He recognizes that permanent war in the Middle East is bad. He admits that the Iraq invasion had disastrous consequences, opposed the Libyan imbroglio, and criticizes proposals to fight on both sides of Syria’s hideous civil war. He forthrightly opposes military confrontation with Russia.

He also has raised the long overdue question: why are Americans expected to forever subsidize rich dependent allies, most notably Europe, Japan, and South Korea? The first is wealthier than America; the latter two are wealthy enough to confront their adversaries. Trump appears to instinctively understand that the Pentagon should not be a welfare agency for foreigners who prefer that someone else pay for their defense.