This article’s header photo shows the flag-raising ceremony after the 1944 recapture of Guam. It also shows a Marine, Pfc. Ernest Kernen, who was killed in the preceding battle. Guam played an important role in providing a staging base for naval, amphibious, and air operations against Japan.

Eighty years later, as China ramps up its harassment of a U.S. treaty defense ally, the Philippines, and its preparations for a potential invasion of Taiwan, Guam has renewed strategic importance. Unfortunately, the commander in chief doesn’t recognize the island’s importance to any future war with China.