NO ONE would accuse US President Joe Biden of being bound by political dogmas. During his career of more than four decades in Washington, Biden has demonstrated his ability to adjust his views to the changing realities, projecting a healthy sense of pragmatism at a time when that has become a rare commodity in politically polarised America.

Most recently, after pledging to transform America’s social-economic system by spending trillions of US dollars, President Biden has recognised that his ambitious plans have been overrun by surging inflation and strong opposition on Capitol Hill. Hence the president’s shift towards a more modest set of economic priorities and a series of reduced spending bills, angering his allies in the progressive left. But then those measures have sailed through Congress.

“Bidenism”, as a manifestation of the capacity to adapt one’s policies to a changing world, has been most evident in the way the former Senator and vice-president, and now president, has dealt with foreign policy issues. Hence, while Senator Biden and President Barack Obama’s VP was an ardent supporter of free trade and the approach of engagement with China, President Biden has responded to the political backlash against globalisation and the growing economic and military challenges from China, by advancing a more protectionist agenda and transforming himself into a China hawk.