WASHINGTON — The last time China hosted an Olympic Games, in 2008, the Asian powerhouse held a relatively minor role in American politics, mentioned during debates about outsourcing jobs and little else.
There’s little that’s minor about China’s presence in American politics today.
In the 14 years since the last Beijing Olympics, the public’s view of China has transformed and intensified, according to a bipartisan collection of political strategists and lawmakers, changing how Republicans and Democrats each talk about the country and rearranging its place in the national conversation.
