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Joe Biden
OpinionComment
Chi Wang
Chi Wang

Opinion | Why Joe Biden’s celebration of America’s successful return is premature

  • The US president has underestimated the complexities of outcompeting China and overestimated allies’ capacity to recommit to US leadership
  • Moreover, Congress remains deadlocked, economic recovery is uncertain and Donald Trump could seek the presidency again in 2024

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Illustration: Craig Stephens
Chi Wang
Joe Biden reached the 100-day milestone of his presidency last week. He marked the occasion by giving his first address to a joint Congress session, outlining an ambitious domestic agenda focused on bringing the United States back from the health and economic crises posed by the Covid-19 pandemic and transforming the economy to meet 21st-century challenges.
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China loomed large in his speech. Not only did Biden return to his oft-repeated (and misleading) line about travelling 17,000 miles with Chinese President Xi Jinping, but he also expanded on their discussions since he took office in January.

“I told him, ‘We welcome the competition. We’re not looking for conflict’,” Biden said. “I told him what I’ve said to many world leaders: that America will not back away from our commitments – our commitment to human rights and fundamental freedoms and to our alliances.”

Many of his domestic policies, including a massive infrastructure bill that calls for expanded funding for science, research and technology, also have foreign policy implications, as they are justified in part by citing the need to compete with China.

This is not an entirely novel approach; even 10 years ago, when Biden was vice-president, then-president Barack Obama said the US needed to make domestic changes to meet the challenges of China’s economic rise. These recommendations went largely unheeded.

Biden’s eagerness to take on China does not mesh well with his controversial statements two years ago, when he dismissed China’s potential as a rival to the US. “China is going to eat our lunch? Come on, man,” Biden said at an event in Iowa. “They’re not competition for us.”
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