The election of Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) as Speaker of the US House of Representatives augurs well for the administration of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. of the Republic of the Philippines.

Johnson is an ardent admirer of former US President Ronald Reagan, a close friend and ally of the late President Ferdinand Marcos Sr.

During the darkest hours of Marcos Sr. in 1986, President Reagan was known to have ordered the US forces based in the Philippines to rescue his friend and ally.

Irwin Ver, who was head of Marcos's security detail, confirmed that there was a plan for the Americans to take them to Paoay, Ilocos Norte. But during an overnight stop at Clark Air Base, the plan was changed.

"We were expecting to land in Paoay," Ver said. "Instead, we landed in Hawaii."

Johnson extolled President Reagan and talked about the secret of his rapport with the people. It was simply because Reagan communicated great things. And these great things are the seven core principles of American conservatism: individual freedom, limited government, rule of law, peace through strength, fiscal responsibility, free markets, and human dignity.

When President Marcos visited America on 16 September 1982, President Reagan, a Republican, welcomed him with a speech that was warm with memories of the past.

"Tonight, we welcome old and good friends to the White House in a visit symbolic of the superb relationship between our two countries. It's a nostalgic occasion for us. Nancy and I often think of our 1969 visit to Manila, when we first experienced that unexcelled Philippine hospitality as guests of our guests here tonight. And who has her birthday here tonight (referring to Irene Marcos) was quite young and small at the time."

During the State Dinner, President Reagan offered a toast: "To the President and Mrs. Marcos, and to the people of the Philippines, and to the mutual respect, the dedication to peace and security in the world and the shared values which unite us."

President Marcos reciprocated as he offered his toast: "To the continued health and success of the President of the United States, the prosperity and strength of the American people, and the friendship of the people of the United States and the Philippines."

If, by a twist of faith, Donald Trump, also a Republican and leader of that party's Make America Great Again or MAGA candidates,  gets re-elected president of the United States, President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. shall have the singular honor of repeating a historic event, filled with the nostalgia of what transpired between his father Ferdinand Sr. and Ronald Reagan in 1982, and that could possibly happen  again between him  and Donald Trump in 2024.

President Rodrigo Duterte, this country's only legal genius with a grade of 75 percent, was once voted by international news media as the world's most popular head of state and at the end of his term was accorded by his people an acceptability rating of 87 percent, the rarest phenomenon in the history of democratic countries of the world. 

President Duterte also had the distinct honor of being toasted by no less than US President Donald Trump, then considered the most powerful man in the world.

On that night, at the Asean Summit in Manila on 12 November 2019, President Duterte serenaded his American counterpart at a gala dinner, telling the room that Donald Trump made him do it.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I'm going to sing uninvited," he told the crowd to laughter, "upon the orders of the Commander in Chief of the United States." Joined by Filipino pop star Pilita Corales, Duterte sang the love song "Ikaw."

"You are the light of my world, a half of mine," one verse, when translated, stated. "We've had a great relationship. This has been very successful," Trump said.

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