Is America Getting Tired of Fighting China?

U.S. public attitudes toward China are becoming less hawkish, widening the gap between Washington's national security establishment and a public increasingly favoring cooperation. A Chicago Council survey found 57% of Americans support engagement with China, compared with 85% of surveyed national security professionals favoring competition and containment.

The shift is being driven partly by generational change, growing admiration for Chinese technology and infrastructure, and frustration with domestic dysfunction in the United States. But the underlying rivalry remains intact, with trade, technology, geopolitical alignments, and structural economic tensions continuing to constrain the fragile détente.

Kaiser Kuo, host of the Sinica podcast, joins Eric to examine changing perceptions of China, including generational attitudes, performance legitimacy, and whether the current U.S.-China détente can endure.

Show Notes

• Foreign Affairs: How China Is Winning Friends and Influencing People by Eric Olander and Lizzi Lee
• Sinica: Sinica Podcast Substack by Kaiser Kuo
• Sinica: The Fever Has Broken — For Now by Kaiser Kuo

📌 Topics Covered in This Episode

• Shifting American Attitudes Toward China and Cooperation
• Chinamaxxing and the Rise of China's Appeal
• Generational Divides in U.S.-China Relations Today
• The Fragile Détente Between Washington and Beijing
• China's Performance Legitimacy and American Dysfunction
• Why Greater China Literacy Matters for Policymakers

Join the Discussion:

X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander I @KaiserKuo

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth

Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social

Follow CGSP in French and Spanish:

• French: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine
• Spanish: www.chinalasamericas.com | @ChinaAmericas