Trump and his advisers have repeatedly insisted that the U.S. president can pretty much do whatever he wants and that the pesky Congress need only be consulted rarely.
Taiwanese government officials and national security leaders must remember that, right now, silence speaks louder than words, and it is better to remain still than to act rashly.
[T]he crisis of soft power risks accelerating the decline of [U.S.] power in the world, activating and speeding up centrifugal dynamics that might otherwise have taken years to fully manifest.
When political legitimacy becomes contingent on recognition by a superpower, populations lose their right to self-determination and democracy becomes a selective tool.