> simply are showing this as a legitimate threat

The issue is with the perspective, China is certainty a "legitimate threat" to the US, at least from a technological perspective, the problem is that China IS NOT a threat to the rest of the world or at least not in the same degree it is to the hegemonic power of the US, meanwhile the US indeed IS a technological and military threat to countries around the globe, so wherever the US and its agencies gaslight about China being a threat, it is always too funny, when you remember that the US has all sorts of military bases, drones subs and spy satellites deployed, not to mention it is already spying digitally on the entire planet (this conversation included ofc)