President Donald Trump’s declaration that, for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, “the party is over” was treated like a barbarian shout in the salon. Yet his statement has the impolite virtue of being true. For 75 years, Europe has hosted the most expensive open bar in history, all of it paid for by the United States, and called this dependency an “alliance.” Now, when the bill is presented and the host suggests perhaps the guests might behave as if they own something besides opinions, they are scandalized.
Nothing has exposed this charade more clearly than the recent confrontation with Iran. The most revealing actor was NATO Europe, which, at the precise moment when it had the strongest interest in American protection, chose instead to lecture, obstruct, and deny access to bases that exist only thanks to American power and American money.
