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Politics

美国能打赢新冷战么？

Jul 14, 2022 Minxin Pei

发自加州克莱蒙特—美国总统拜登把美国与中俄的对抗形容为民主与专制之间的无尽斗争。如果这个说法是对的，那么美国的胜利不仅取决于该国战胜对手的能力，还取决于它能否成功保障国内的民主。

美国完全可以借助近期一系列高超外交操作实现前半段事项。首先拜登在最近的G7和北约峰会上巩固了一个横跨欧亚的广泛反俄中联盟。此前西方各国政府还迅速动员起来支持乌克兰并对俄罗斯总统普京2月份在此地发动的战争予以惩罚。

拜登还利用中国对其邻国的攻击行为来夯实美国在东亚的联盟。由澳大利亚、印度、日本和美国组成的“四方安全对话（Quad）”机制一直在深化其战略合作。简而言之，拜登政府已经证明自己有能力团结美国的外国民主盟友去抵制其专制对手。

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0 Comments on this paragraph, 11 Comments on this article

j. von Hettlingen Jul 29, 2022

Minxin Pei sees Biden’s current battle for democracy against autocracy as a “new ccold war.” In his first 60 days in office, Biden had clashed with China and Russia. Although Putin and Xi Jinping declared a “no-limits” friendship between China and Russia during the Beijing Winter Olympics in February, Biden knows that a double cold war won’t be in American’s interests. It explains why he avoided raising Beijing’s hackles by not encouraging Nancy Pelosi to visit Taiwan in August.
In recent months Biden has been able to win the “cold war abroad,” by rallying allies against Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, because the US and its allies are “still far ahead of their autocratic adversaries in critical areas, not least military and technological capabilities.”
Pei says, since Russia and China “consistently engage in the kind of aggression and bullying that drives smaller countries into the arms of the US,” Biden needs to defend democracy at home in order not to lose credibility. Right now he is “losing the fight” to the GOP, with many Republicans believing that democracy itself has betrayed America, by allowing the “wrong” people to take charge. They have been using the “big lie” to undermine Biden’s legitimacy and push for new voting restrictions.
In order to ensure fair and free elections, Democrats “must overcome structural obstacles embedded in the country’s constitution.” The GOP has the largest Electoral College edge in over seven decades, because the Republican-leaning key battleground states in rural areas with small populations have disproportionate influence on the presidential election than the country as a whole. George W. Bush in 2000 and Trump in 2016 won thanks to the Electoral College, despite having lost the popular vote nationwide.
Hence Republicans “face less pressure to temper their extremism” and are able to “pander to a radical minority, and still wield just as much power as Democrats.” Pei says a “minority rule and the rise of an illiberal regime in the US could unleash civil unrest, pitting a….disenfranchised majority against an increasingly authoritarian minority.” A country “beset by such turmoil” could hardly “lead a coaltion of democracies on the world stage.”
The GOP can also rely on a “poisoned media environment in which firms like Rupert Murdoch’s Fox News reap massive profits by promoting lies and conspiracy theories.” As the party caters to the rich and powerful, many business leaders like the GOP agenda – low taxes and small government. This wll have an impact on US foreign policy overseas. Without resources the US won’t be able to defend democracy and challenge China and Russia.
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Peter Schaeffer Jul 20, 2022

The Democratic party has already rejected the very idea of democracy. Consider the issues in the USA. The US Supreme Court held (recently) that Abortion laws should be determined by the democratic process. Predictably, the Democrats are outraged. So much for supporting democracy. The US Supreme Court held (recently) that climate laws should be determined by the democratic process. Predictably, the Democrats are outraged. So much for supporting democracy. The Democrats only like democracy when they get their way. Otherwise, they hate it.
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Mauricio Arellano Jul 17, 2022

Interesting way of defending democracy. Your recomendation is to destroy opposition? That sounds like autocracy.
- Barry Rosenfeld Jul 17, 2022
  
  Defending democracy means opposing anti-democratic organizations. Nothing in the article proposes to destroy anything.
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- Martin Wolf Jul 17, 2022
  
  An opposition aiming at destroying democracy itself is illegitimate. Support for such an opposition should be withdrawn. It is not a matter of destroying opposition per se. It is a matter destroying an opposition that plans to subvert the fundamental preconditions of liberal democracy.
  - Mauricio Arellano Jul 17, 2022
    
    Still sounds like autocracy. In a democracy parties should improve their offer, convince voters. Destroying or canceling opposition is something an autocrat would do.
    - Martin Wolf Jul 18, 2022
      
      Were the German authorities right to allow the Nazis to campaign freely in the 1930s?
      - Mauricio Arellano Jul 18, 2022
        
        The Nazis were wrong when in 1933 they passed a law canceling the opposition and Germany became a dictertorship.
        
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Robert Johnston Jul 17, 2022

Are the Republicans the new Tory Brexiteers?
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A G Jul 15, 2022

Indeed it is, The current Republican Party is a threat to America and the world.
- May 31, 2023
  
  This comment was removed by a moderator. Replies to this comment may also be deleted. Please note that we moderate comments to ensure the conversation remains topically relevant. We appreciate well-informed comments and welcome your criticism and insight. Please be civil and avoid name-calling and ad hominem remarks.
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美国能打赢新冷战么？

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