This book draws critical attention to the core security challenges that have defined U.S. foreign policy in relation to China and its rise on the international stage. During the administrations of Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama the traditional safeguards and stabilizers to strategic competition were broadly adhered to, albeit not without in some cases great difficulty. Under the leadership of Donald Trump and China’s Xi Jinping, however, these bulwarks were alarmingly diminished. Abrupt departures in engagement platforms and asserting regional defensive postures have become the new norms. With brevity and nuance, this book provides much needed connective tissue in examining these departures and their antecedents across the Bush, Obama, and Trump administrations. It reveals Washington and Beijing are moving toward a new period where, unlike previous ones, this one will be characterized by an amplified preponderance of competition, and the enhanced probability of conflict and confrontation.