It’s not a new argument. What sensible person could support a Republican candidate for President with no foreign policy, economic or legislative experience? A candidate lacking the right background to keep the nation out of protracted wars or even nuclear confrontation. And the man is a mere entertainer to boot, known more for his television appearances than his policy positions! We all know, in hindsight, what a magnificent job was done by the last man they said these things about. Under President Reagan’s watch, Iran ended the hostage crisis without taking a payoff, the Cold War ceased without military confrontation, the economy was booming, and there were plenty of good jobs to be had. But Reagan didn’t make this successful transition from showman to Commander-in-Chief all by himself. He was a talented manager who surrounded himself with the best political, economic, and military minds.

Our current entertainer-turned-candidate Donald Trump is a great leader based on nothing more than his success in the cutthroat real estate business. More children of wealth squander their inheritance than increase it. Trump bucked this trend, increasing his substantially. Judging from his children, they will do the same. If you want an accurate picture of Trump’s leadership ability, take a close look at those children; it is harder to raise good kids than to make money.

So why have so many Republican leaders rejected Trump as their standard bearer? The surface claim is that it’s Trump’s supposed status as a political lightweight, coupled with his tendency towards vulgarity. But the real reason is that he’s not part of their club. Trump carries no political debts to these leaders. They are liable to be shut out of the power structure if Trump is elected. Remember, these people depend on government involvement for their income. To paraphrase the great philosopher George Carlin’s rant on the American Dream, they are owned by the people who own big media companies. GOP leaders don’t want a citizenry capable of critical thinking; they want obedient workers who are just smart enough to run machines and do the paperwork, and just dumb enough to passively accept increasingly mediocre jobs. Americans are being beaten over the head by clubs wielded by those who want to tell them what to think and what to buy. It is called the American Dream because today you have to be asleep to believe it. That is the sorry state into which our political system has regressed.

How do you fix a broken paradigm? You change the leaders. Thomas Jefferson said “a little rebellion now and then is a good thing and . . . necessary in the political world. . .” Theodore Roosevelt had that same spirit when he went against the political insiders at the turn of the last century. TR was staunchly against party hacks getting government jobs. He only became President because the Republican Party bosses in New York were so threatened by his Progressive Reforms that they pushed him out of the way, arranging for him to become McKinley’s vice presidential running mate. After an anarchist assassinated President McKinley, TR ascended to the presidency and America evolved. His successes cannot be denied. Roosevelt took control of our natural resources, promoted strong national defense as the surest way to peace, and curbed the excesses of industry.

It is embarrassing that members of the Republican Party like John Kasich, Jeb Bush, Mitt Romney, and Lindsey Graham have not only refused to vote for their party’s candidate, but are actively working against him. Announcing their support for the Libertarian candidate will not insulate them from blame if Mrs. Clinton is elected. But their calculus is a rational one; they are protecting their own interests. They would rather see a member of the polite, bipartisan ruling elite as president, than give an outsider with promising new ideas a chance. No matter that the member of their club promises to be a poor and unprincipled leader. And that is the problem we are facing today: old loyalties, old ideas, and failed systems.

Most Americans get it. In a recent Fox News poll, fifty percent of voters say things in the country are so broken that we need “a completely different kind of leader in charge.” That same poll demonstrated that in 1998, sixty-one percent of Americans had confidence in the “wisdom of the American people when it comes to making good choices on Election Day.” Today only fifty-one percent of people feel the same.

If Trump isn’t different, I don’t know who is. At a time when we can’t even trust each other, he is asking us to trust him to recover our country. The unknown is frightening, but America hit the right mark with Reagan and TR. We should take a chance with Trump for the sake of our nation and our children. We know what we’ll get from the alternative. After all, Trump made his money from building things. Hillary made hers by peddling influence to foreign interests.

Eliot M. Kaplan is an attorney in Kansas City, Missouri. Mr. Kaplan has written on civil justice reform and politics for outlets including The Wall Street Journal and the Kansas City Star. He recently served the USDOJ, Eastern District of Missouri Hate Crime Task Force.