Rule of Law: Let's see how far Jack Smith goes. I'll agree if Trump is reelected and pardons himself and the J6 traitors.

Roman kleptocracy: ask Emperor Tiberias.

China has no blue ocean navy. China's oil deliveries are guaranteed by the US navy. Building artificial islands doesn't make a state a maritime empire. Last I heard the US still occupied 1/3 of Okinawa, Guam, Hawaii, bases in the Philippines, USVI, the Aleutians and 800 bases worldwide.

Energy independence: the US is the world's largest oil and gas producer Texas is a wind and solar superpower, running its oil and gas industries on them.

Inequality is declining due to a labor shortage: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/07/economics-inequality-piketty-milanovic/674702/

"China isn't better or worse at it"--Find me some Chinese soft power. You can't. SK and Japan are far better at cultural export.