Vacuum of Power: How Policy Chaos Empowered China, Raised Costs, and Threatened Democracy

Tristan unpacks the far-reaching consequences of America’s withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)—one of the most damaging foreign policy mistakes in modern U.S. history. With years of diplomatic effort with key allies like Japan, South Korea, and Vietnam squandered, Trump has left a power vacuum in Asia that China is now exploiting. Tristan connects this strategic blunder to a broader pattern of policy missteps—from healthcare cuts that threaten millions of Americans, to voting rights rollbacks that risk disenfranchising vast swaths of the electorate.