Vice President JD Vance set off a firestorm in Munich when he chastised European leaders for their hostility toward free speech, their democratic deficit and their poorly conceived immigration policies.

Vance’s shocking words — and the prospects of American disengagement — were so traumatic, they prompted French President Emmanuel Macron to cobble together an emergency summit of European leaders, where the participants promptly agreed on nothing.

I do think Europe was right to be shocked — shocked that Vance took it so easy on them.

What Vance could have said (and probably should have said) was that Europe has had three years to coherently and resolutely respond to the unprovoked invasion by Russia but has failed. Europe still imports Russian oil and gas, funding a war that draws in billions in aid that could be spent on defense and investment.

Vance could have pointed out that weak, half-measure sanctions have not prevented the Russians from packing their missiles full of European parts (and some American parts); that European states have skimped on defense spending; that Germany insisted on closing its last nuclear power plants,........

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