Without an iota of consideration for America's staunchest of allies, President Donald Trump has reminded us that, friend or foe, he will dump on anyone he likes to please his Twitter audience and bolster his domestic appeal.

That is the reality we are now dealing with and however galling his disgraceful treatment of the Australian government might be, our foreign policy and defence officials will continue the day-to-day work that maintains the relationship. There is a large iceberg beneath the surface that will remain steady despite the mad gale at the surface.

But here's some reality for Trump: the US needs Australia, not just the other way around. He needs the network of alliances the US has carefully crafted in the post-1945 period because his country's power stems not just from its military might but its friendships.

Australia is not a freeloader. Our defence spending is now close to 2 per cent of GDP. We have famously fought alongside the Americans in every major conflict of the past 100 years. The US has marines stationed in Darwin and will this year fly F-22 Raptors out of Tindall base. Long range bombers are also likely to rotate through the Northern Territory.