Letting Down Our Friends

Yesterday the prime minister of Japan, Fumio Kishida, spoke to a joint session of Congress. It's a remarkable fact, given the history, that today Japan is one of our closest and most reliable allies, and its people among the most pro-American in the world. (Kishida's family is from Hiroshima.)

During his remarks, Kishida reminded the U.S. of its history of being a champion of freedom and democracy in the world:

You believed that freedom is the oxygen of humanity. The world needs the United States to continue playing this pivotal role in the affairs of nations. And yet, as we meet here today, I detect an undercurrent of self-doubt among some Americans about what your role in the world should be.

It is a sure thing that our adversaries have noticed how weak, and weak-willed, the U.S. has become. That scares me. And at the same time, it saddens me to be assured that our friends have noticed as well. They depend on us, they need us, and we are no longer willing or able to do our part.

I think Kishida got one thing wrong, however. It is not "self-doubt" that he perceives. Those who have weakened us have no doubts at all; they have quite deliberately chosen not only to surrender, but to abandon our friends.