Picture this, Mrs. von der Leyen, who gave a speech that could scare off pigeons, got to hang out with Mr. Xi. And here’s Mr. Macron, giving us all a global reminder of why we cannot invite him to parties. He goes to visit an authoritarian ruler and then has the nerve to say that in times of crisis, Europe shouldn’t let America call the shots. Hello, Mr. Macron, can you hear the sound of your own foot in your mouth?

But that’s not all, folks! Mr. Macron, in all his infinite wisdom, decides to throw Taiwan under the bus while he’s at it. Now, diplomacy is all well and good, but if we’re being real, sometimes a little muscle helps prevent a punch to the face. And nobody gets better at defending themselves by twiddling their thumbs. France and its bases in the Indo-Pacific had a chance to show some real strength, sending a frigate through the Taiwan Strait while China was doing drills. Kudos to them, right? Hold your horses, folks. Mr. Macron thought it was a good idea to play it cool, saying that Taiwan is not Europe’s problem. Way to show some solidarity, Mr. M.

Heck, let’s just air all our dirty laundry, shall we? Mr. Macron also made it harder for our American friends who are trying to defend their support for Ukraine. They’re already dealing with enough heat from their critics who think the money should be spent elsewhere. But sure, let’s add to the mix and make their lives harder. Cheers, Mr. Macron.

Call us crazy but isn’t Taiwan important to Europe? We get it, life is tough, and nobody wants to go to war. But let’s not act like a group of teenagers avoiding an awkward conversation. Have the closed-door talks with allies if you need to, but don’t go yacking away in public. Mr. Macron, we’re all trying to protect democratic freedoms and advanced technologies critical to global trade here. These interests are shared among Americans and Europeans. And if you think you can go at it alone, you’re living in la-la land, pal. We need to stick together, or we can get ready to usher in a Chinese century, baby.