How Our Political Civil War Has Become a National Security Crisis
The Hidden Threat That Could Shatter America's Global Power
Earlier this month, nearly a million federal workers were furloughed as Washington descended into partisan gridlock.
At the same time, Chinese state media released a statement: “America is dying from within.”
They weren’t just mocking us. They were documenting our decline.
For decades, the U.S. served as the world’s stabilizer and standard-bearer.
Today, it is seen as a warning. We are a country so bitterly divided that we can’t keep our own government running, much less lead the world.
To our allies, it signals unreliability. To our enemies, it signals weakness.
And while we’re busy fighting each other, something deeper is unraveling beneath us.
This isn’t just dysfunction. It is a direct threat to national security.
The Story We Don’t Want to Tell
At home, our political division feels frustrating. But around the world, it looks dangerous.
The current 29-day government shutdown in 2025 isn't just a domestic inconvenience. It's a broadcast to the world that American governance is breaking down.
In China, the state-run press used it as evidence of U.S. decline.
Russia amplified the chaos online.
Our allies watch in silence, recalculating their trust.
When the United States turns inward, a vacuum opens abroad.
That vacuum gets filled by adversaries, propaganda, and instability.
Critical decisions stall. Aid packages are delayed. And the public loses trust in our institutions.
We may see a government shutdown as politics-as-usual. Others see it as a green light.
We’re Two Americas Now, and That’s the Problem
Gallup shows the partisan divide in presidential approval is at its highest level ever recorded. Ninety-three percent of Republicans support Trump. Only one percent of Democrats agree.
This goes far beyond politics. It is tribal.
Eighty percent of Americans believe the other party will destroy the country if allowed to govern.
Nearly half of Democrats and Republicans view each other as "downright evil."
When we lose that sense of shared identity, democracy doesn’t stand a chance.
And without a functioning democracy, America loses its most powerful asset: credibility.
We are not just divided. We are disconnected from reality. Millions still believe the 2020 election was stolen, regardless of evidence, recounts, or court decisions.
We no longer argue over ideas. We argue over what is real.
Proof That Division Has a Price
If you want proof that our division is weakening us, follow the money.
In 2023, Congress brought us to the brink of a default over the debt ceiling.
That recklessness led Fitch to downgrade U.S. credit for only the second time in history.
Their reason? A steady deterioration in governance.
In other words, the world no longer trusts us to manage our own finances.
U.S. Treasury bonds were once the safest asset in the world. Now, they are considered a little riskier.
This shift increases our borrowing costs and chips away at our role as the world’s financial anchor.
Why Our Adversaries Are Smiling
While we argue over past elections, China plans for Taiwan. Russia probes NATO. And neither is losing sleep over American resolve.
They see a nation distracted. We are too busy attacking each other to notice who is watching.
And they are watching closely.
Russia and China have invested heavily in disinformation campaigns designed to inflame our divisions. They don’t need to invent new lies. They just turn up the volume on the ones we already believe.
Every time we fall for it, we do their work for them.
If This Continues, What Comes Next?
According to political scientists, U.S. democracy is no longer considered fully stable. It now resembles mixed systems like Hungary or Mexico.
Freedom House downgraded America’s global democratic standing.
The Bright Line Watch survey found that most experts expect things to worsen by 2027.
If current trends continue, here is what we risk:
Government paralysis becoming routine.
States refusing to comply with federal laws.
Every election being contested by default.
Foreign policy losing direction.
Civil unrest becoming normalized.
By 2030, the United States may no longer serve as the world’s example.
Instead, we could become its warning.
The Decision Ahead: Heal or Collapse
This isn’t about agreeing on everything. It’s about preserving the structure that lets us disagree without destroying each other.
Solutions exist. Reforms like ranked-choice voting, independent redistricting, and investment in civic education can help lower the temperature.
We need better rules, yes. But we also need better habits.
We have to choose to see each other as Americans first.
Because right now, our enemies are hoping we don’t.
They are betting we will keep turning on one another. And if that continues, they won’t need to act. We’ll collapse from within.
But this outcome is not set in stone.
We still have a chance to change course. We still have the power to turn this around.
The world is watching.
Let’s give them a reason to believe we can still lead.
Stay Sharp,
Gideon Ashwood