In his recent Harper's cover piece, “Empire Burlesque,” Daniel Bessner traced the evolution of the foreign policy vision that defined the so-called American century and how it has been reshaped by failures and a changing world order, including a new multipolarity and the rise of China. He draws a distinction between the liberal internationalists and the “restrainers,” the two dominant foreign policy camps in Washington, and he calls for planning a future beyond the American century. But can America act like a normal country? 

Bessner, an Associate Professor of International Studies at the University of Washington and co-host of the podcast American Prestige, joined Dispatches with Rania Khalek to discuss this and more. 

Daniel’s article: https://harpers.org/archive/2022/07/what-comes-after-the-american-century/