American institutions and individuals are struggling to move society forward economically and socially, as they experience conflict more than unity, tensions more than trust, anxiety more than calm and disinformation more than information. These kinds of realities will take time to be resolved. Yet that does not mean they are benign. In fact, such confusion in the transition between identities has given other countries the perception that the time has come for them to exploit opportunities that a U.S.pullback provides and to advance their own interests.