Vice President Mike Pence said Sunday night he is “proud” that the Trump administration “is the first in decades” not to get the U.S. entangled in a new war. “That’s Peace through Strength,” Pence tweeted

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FNC: “Forbes ran an article in December that said no matter your feelings about Trump’s term in office, he has done more ‘in four years to shift the vector of U.S. military preparations than most accomplish in eight.’ Loren Thompson, a national security contributor to the magazine, pointed out that President Obama launched a troop surge in 2009 in Afghanistan and sent troops to Iraq in 2014 while the ISIS insurgency raged.  Trump, on the other hand, ‘bought the U.S. military four years of relative peace in which to rebuild from endless wars.’ Trump’s critics would likely highlight what they called reckless threats to countries like Iran and North Korea as an example of his bellicose nature. But his overtures to Kim Jong-un, even though they did not pan out, was seen by some critics as a sincere effort for a diplomatic breakthrough.”

Forbes, not known now or then to be a pro-Trump publication, is right. Hence one of the dangers of a Biden administration. Trump, the alleged bellicose cowboy, worked for peace around the world and many times achieved it. Trump’s record in the Middle East alone is astounding. If you factor out Covid-19, which granted is impossible, his term in office was a string of uninterrupted successes both at home and abroad. Only after he lost the election did he jump off the ledge.

Biden knows he has to compete with that record and will be held against its standard. He also knows Democrats are perceived as weak and accommodating on national security policy. The Obama-Biden administration proved that. The Biden administration’s plan to revive the Iran nuclear deal proves it further.

Thus Biden and his team will feel they have to prove themselves in a dramatic fashion. That has serious consequences, as it may not be in a manner conducive to American interests. It could be in some multinational boondoggle led by the UN or in a move against Israel to appease Biden’s new Iranian pals.

It is true Donald Trump was never particularly liked overseas, except in Eastern Europe. Because they know the personal cost of socialism, the East Europeans revere Trump for fighting against it at home. But America was respected abroad. Hence why Trump never had to go to war. Potential foes knew they would never get away with it because of Trump’s decisive manner and military preparedness.

However, with Joe Biden they see a window of opportunity stretching into years. It’s because Biden will attempt to be internationally liked and thus will fold like a cheap card table at every instance. An emphasis on being liked is a nice quality in a courtesan, or a cocker spaniel. Not in a president of the United States.