The reason is that U.S. leadership and credibility appear to be indefinitely at risk, and it is inevitable that both will likely suffer when U.S. indispensability policies run up against their practical limits of power. In the next section of Carpenter's argument, he discusses the failure of the United States to recognize different forms of engagement options. The most constructive alternative to the current indispensable policy is the consortium model of regional actors in which the United States serves as "first among equals" (p. 24), allowing the United States to offload of their security responsibilities and adopt a more detached strategic approach. this role would at least benefit the United States

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