A Strategy of Denial?

Chris, Melanie, and Zack discuss public attitudes toward the United States and China, and the Trump administration's response  -- which mostly seems to deny that they matter. Why does much of the world view the United States less favorably, and China more favorably, than it did just a few years ago? Is this just a temporary decline that can be overcome with a new administration or nicer advisors? Does it even matter to American interests if we aren't loved? Grievances to the Pentagon for its secrecy and dissembling around casualties in the Iran War, and for thinking that its problems can be solved with more testosterone, and to the Coast Guard for its Polar Security Cutter program which is grossly overbudget and badly delayed. Attas to members of Congress for calling out the Pentagon's secrecy and dissembling around the Iran War, to those who pushed back on the Trump administration's plan to investigate the New York Times and Google for a series of leaks surrounding the new Air Force One, and for those uncovering and publishing the COVID files.

Show Links:

Jonathan Schulman, Laura Silver, Laura Clancy, and William Miner, "People in Many Countries Now View China More Positively Than the U.S.," Pew Research Center, July 15, 2026.

"America's Report Card in Southeast Asia," Net Assessment, War on the Rocks, April 11, 2024.

Under Secretary of War Elbridge Colby, @USWPColby, X, July 14, 2026.

Opinion, "Iran, China, Canada? A Defense of Trump's Grand Strategy," Interesting Times, New York Times, July 23, 2026.

Biyon Sony Joseph, "Washington misreads middle power cooperation," Lowy Institute, July 23, 2026.

Helene Cooper, Lara Jakes, and John Ismay, "Number of U.S. Troop Deaths Suddenly Appears Lower on Pentagon Website," New York Times, July 23, 2026.

Helene Cooper, "Pentagon Changes How It Reports Casualties in Iran War," July 26, 2026.

Tom Nichols, "The American People Need the Truth About the Iran War," The Atlantic, July 22, 2026.

Nancy A. Youssef and Jonathan Lemire, "War by Any Other Name," The Atlantic, July 21, 2026

Jenny Leonard, Trump's Aides See China Cheating on Trade, But Shun Reprisal, Bloomberg, July 15, 2026.