In a US showdown with China, there are some missions with no special-operations 'easy button'

• Special-operations forces have been a centerpiece of US military operations for two decades.
• As the US focuses on competition with China, those forces will take on a new set of missions.
• US leaders should remember that special operators aren't suited for some tasks, one expert says.

For two decades, US policymakers have relied on special-operations forces to tackle the hardest missions.

And for a good reason: US special-operations units have a history of achieving outcomes on the battlefield out of proportion to their relatively small size and budget.