A place of sin, spin and soft power https://t.co/U8HH238rI3 ...

A place of sin, spin and soft power https://t.co/y8O2hA8Lpf ...

A place of sin, spin and soft power https://t.co/3lp1iEl2r2 ...

A place of sin, spin and soft power https://t.co/VdUtXv3uT8 ...

A place of sin, spin and soft power https://t.co/y3LxiX9bgH ...

A place of sin, spin and soft power https://t.co/CVDduhJYaK ...

Geopolitical Landscape & Influence - The United States' global influence is perceived to be declining, while China's is growing, a trend predating the Trump administration but accelerated by it [1] - Many countries find it hard to negotiate with the Trump administration due to policies like tariff announcements [1] - China's Belt and Road Initiative involves over 1 trillion USD investment in the last 20 years, 10 times the size of the Marshall Plan [1] - Freedom House data indicates a decrease in democratic countries and an increase in authoritarianism over the past 19 years [1] Economic & Strategic Competition - China is the world's largest producer of steel, aluminum, and electric vehicles, and a major producer of coal and alternative energy [1] - Countries partnering with China through the Belt and Road Initiative may face issues such as low project standards, uncompleted projects, and debt impacting their sovereignty [1] - The Trump administration's decision to allow Nvidia to export H20 chips to China raises concerns about access to critical technology [1] - The US needs to provide viable alternatives to China's offerings, including working with allies on critical tech projects [1][2] Soft Power & Strategic Advantages - The US possesses significant soft power advantages, including a leading higher education system with more top 100 universities than the next 10 countries combined, generating 100 billion USD from foreign students and 1 trillion USD from tourism [3] - Restricting foreign students and clamping down on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives at universities undermines a major strategic advantage [4] - USAID and State Department initiatives, such as foreign aid, are crucial for competing with China by providing assistance like building roads and hospitals [6][7][8] - American culture, exemplified by figures like Taylor Swift and Beyonce, remains a unique and powerful attractor for the US [11]

The first time in American history, a completely partisan recessions bill was passed by Congress just hours after the Senate. The House voted to approve President Trump's $9 billion spending cut package. The bill claws back billions in previously approved congressional funding.Two Republicans joined all Democrats in voting against it. The majority of the cuts, $8 billion, comes from foreign assistance programs like migration and refugee assistance and USAID. Another $1.1% billion is being cut from the Corpo ...

Never before has a country forfeited so much soft power with so little justification amid such intense competition with a rival, says @andreaskluth (via @opinion) https://t.co/n2SFkl36vQ ...

Trump's slashing of budgets for government and NGO foreign-aid programs isn't just costing lives, it is giving China an advantage in soft power (via @opinion) https://t.co/CBojRY2B9I ...