The article argues that recent executive overreach and politicization have severely undermined established norms of U.S. civil-military relations. To restore professional standards, the incoming Congress must actively exercise its oversight powers, moving beyond mere criticism to demanding transparency in defense policy and personnel decisions. Key reforms include enforcing meritocratic promotion processes, requiring documented justification for senior officer removals, and preventing the partisan use of the military. These actions are crucial for bolstering public trust and ensuring the military remains a nonpartisan instrument of civilian control.
America Is Losing the Ability to Train Tomorrow’s China Experts.
English Summary
The article argues that the United States is critically losing its capacity to train deep, on-the-ground expertise on China, a decline fueled by funding cuts and political risks that have suspended key programs like Fulbright. This erosion of expertise is deemed a national security threat, as the U.S. needs a deep pool of specialists to interpret China's actions across geopolitics, trade, and security. To reverse this, the authors recommend that the U.S. elevate specific academic exchange programs to high-level summit deliverables, securing explicit assurances from China. Strategically, the U.S. must also reverse domestic funding cuts to area studies infrastructure to rebuild this vital national resource.
中文摘要
本文論述美國在中國議題上，其培養深入、實地專業知識的能力正遭受嚴重流失。這種衰退的推動力來自於資金削減和政治風險，導致了富布萊特等關鍵計畫的中斷。這種專業知識的侵蝕被視為國家安全威脅，因為美國需要一支深厚的專家群體，來從地緣政治、貿易和安全等多個層面解讀中國的行動。為扭轉頹勢，作者建議美國應將特定的學術交流計畫提升至高層峰會的具體成果，並從中國獲得明確的保證。從戰略角度來看，美國也必須恢復國內對區域研究基礎設施的資金投入，以重建這一至關重要的國家資源。
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