BIDEN OVEREXTENDED AMERICA BY PUTTING TOO MUCH EMPHASIS ON THE PROTECTION OF DEMOCRACY. WE NEED TO PULL BACK AND FOCUS ON CONTAINING CHINA: On its face, there is some merit to this argument; Biden did in fact use rhetoric about protecting democracy on a regular basis. In reality, however, the argument fails, because Biden’s actions were frequently at odds with his words. Biden changed course on Saudi Arabia, embraced an increasingly illiberal India, and said very little about human rights violations in China. His support for Ukraine was based more on concerns about imperialism and the international rule of law than supporting democracy. He also made far more effective efforts to contain China through the use of alliances than Trump did. Whether the new Trump team will continue these efforts or isolate America by offending our Asian friends remains to be seen.