Does Chaos Theory Hold the Key to Our Power?

On July 2, 2025, CBS’s parent company, Paramount Global, agreed to a $16 million settlement of Donald Trump’s $20 billion lawsuit in which he claimed he suffered “mental anguish” following then-VP Kamala Harris’s interview on 60 Minutes. A spokesman from Trump’s legal team said that with this settlement, Trump “delivers another win for the American people.”

Three weeks later, the Supreme Court allowed Trump to fire three Democratic members of the Consumer Product Safety Commission. This decision by SCOTUS continues their run of emergency rulings in favor of Trump and his systematic “without cause” terminations of officials from independent agencies.

Two days after that, the White House released their AI Action Plan which recommends “eliminat[ing] references to misinformation, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and climate change.” During his speech, Trump stated, “Once and for all, we are getting rid of woke.”

Trying to make sense of what’s become Trump’s daily chaos is exhausting, draining whatever remaining amount of energy we have to fuel any act of resistance.

This is a well-orchestrated tactic that the Trump administration is using to stun and disempower all who don’t agree with their agenda. From his first day in office in 2025, the blitzkrieg of executive orders, on through a torrent of ego-boosting lawsuits and seemingly disparate announcements is using irrational musings, illogical trade policy and, yes, chaos to further their charge.

But all hope is not lost. There absolutely are ways to mitigate this chaotic runaway train. What if I told you that there is not only a framework for understanding the administration’s actions, but also a means to fight back? 

There is, and it starts with mathematical thinking.

I’m a mathematician, and when I am overwhelmed, I look to logic and meaning in math concepts that allow me to think differently about what I’m seeing before me. I’ve been exploring how the actions of the Trump administration mirror the very definition of Chaos Theory. Most people think of chaos as random events that defy logic or meaning. But the mathematics behind Chaos Theory show us that these seemingly random events have a recognizable pattern in the way that they unfold, revealing a new behavior that is attempting to become the new normal. And because Chaos Theory has recognizable patterns and terms, they can give us a framework to prepare us and queue up our contrarian reactions of resistance to the chaos.

Here are some quick examples for how to use this framework to think differently about what the Trump administration is doing:

1. Aperiodic Behavior

The deluge of executive orders that Trump has issued typifies aperiodic behavior, a type of pacing present in chaos that can’t be regulated or patterned or predicted — all you know is that there’s definitely no end in sight.

2. Positive Feedback Loops

Feedback loops are everywhere, but it’s really only in authoritarian governments (and chaotic systems) that positive feedback loops are the most prominent. Don’t let the name fool you. Negative feedback loops are great. They allow room for conversation and discussions. But, just like the horrendous noise that emanates from an amp or audio speaker when it is too close to a microphone, positive feedback is loud, obnoxious, and endlessly magnifying. 

Trump’s voice, statements, and demands are an example of a positive feedback loop. They not only amplify his messages and agenda; they’ve magnified his reach. The Big Beautiful Bill, signed into law on July 4th, increased ICE’s budget from $8.7 billion to $27.7 billion and along with it, Trump’s executive power. 

3. Tuning Parameter

Each of us has individual biases that inform our own decisions. A chaotic tuning parameter is when those biases become all encompassing to the point where an entire administration’s decisions are led by one person’s belief system. This parameter is like the dial on your thermostat being controlled by one entity, and only they can decide the level of intensity of the behavior of the chaotic actions. In chaos, this tuning is used as a tool to simultaneously optimize and control the overall system (or in this real-life case, administration).

One action of resistance we can take in these moments of chaos is by interrupting Trump’s activities with small counter actions, or “nudges,” to prod him in a different direction. Anyone can perform a nudge, it doesn’t matter who you are or how much power or influence you have. A little nudge at the right time can go a long way. Repeated nudges at the right times are even more powerful.

When an Executive Order is issued, it needs to be reviewed immediately; if it calls for legal action, that too must happen immediately. An unhesitating reaction to this irregular behavior at the right time is a nudge because it shows that this erraticness from an elected official is unacceptable.

When Trump attempts to use government resources for his personal use and gain, there can be no hesitancy from journalists to document those actions as they simultaneously explain the reason that government regulations prohibit it.  

Intercepting the trajectory as it appears, at a specific moment, can nudge its movement off its planned course. Though it won’t stop it, it can redirect its final destination. 

In Chaos Theory, we often talk about something called “the Butterfly Effect,” where the flap of a tiny butterfly’s wings can send reverberations in the air that then travel to the other side of the world and cause a tornado.

This analogy isn’t merely describing how a change now means there could be a change later. It is highlighting that a series of events that is changed almost imperceptibly differently now can immediately alter that series’ entire direction, a new direction that is nearly impossible to detect until you can see that it’s off its original track. But by then, the effect it has left in its wake is impossible to erase.

If this long-term effect sounds familiar, that’s because it’s a major factor at the center of climate change. Each year the temperature rises a little, but over time we now see the catastrophic effects of the slow cumulative change across the globe.

So, consistent and persistent nudging at those optimal moments can make a big difference in the final outcome. It may not feel like these small actions are making a difference, but if you see them as a nudge, having an outsized effect later on, then we can begin to regain our power for resistance. 

There is another rather exciting and energizing form of resistance to an ongoing chaotic event:

Once you can see what a chaotic pattern of events looks like and understand how it is navigable, you can create your own version of chaos, and counter them. In order to reclaim our power and regain our resilience, we need to fight chaos with chaos.

What does this look like in the real world? One example can be found in wildfire management. A proven method to combat a raging wildfire is setting prescribed and controlled fires. Literally fighting fire with fire. 

It is important to point out that the person or group that leads a counter-chaos movement matters. With the nudge, anyone can do it. But fighting chaos with chaos requires a person or group that has existing power and influence because they need to have the means and ability to create a strong countering force.

Applying Chaos Theory

Now that we see the Trump administration’s actions through the framework of mathematical Chaos Theory, let’s look at some of their actions and the counter actions that could be taken.  

A core intent behind the so-called MAGA movement purported to offer an outlet for the frustrations and rage of those who felt neglected by lawmakers with regard to inflation, unemployment, housing. The anger was stoked by Trump and the GOP to such an extent that MAGA, and Trumpism in general, became much more than a part of their followers identity; it’s a conditional circumstance to the chaos born of their leadership, and it points their actions in a very particular direction.

When Trump started talking about raising tariffs during his 2024 campaign, proclaiming, “Prices will come down and come down dramatically and come down fast,” this was meant to stoke his base’s rage. However, even before he took office, he began soft-shoe backpedaling his potential policies. This is a great example of Trump self-sabotaging a core condition that generated the chaos he sparks, and it exemplifies an ideal moment to perform a nudge and knock Trump’s support off course.  

We cannot wait to watch the spin or behold the final outcome of this ongoing tariff dance. We can not be passive right now at all.

We need to own our power by creating a counter narrative about economics, trade, and the balance of global power. There are cohorts of MAGA supporters who are being hurt by the current trade war. How are we nudging back to get the message out to these terribly affected communities? Who can reach these voters? 

Or, if a counter chaotic event is started in opposition to this chaos, what’s our core condition that is broadly representational and serves an unwavering belief? For years now we’ve all heard the shouts from non-Republican parties that there needs to be something for politicians and their constituents to collectively rally around. 

We need to come up with some flavor of populism that strikes a collective chord among the non-Trumpists. Exclamations of “better” and “more fair” are too general, too subjective, and offer no common baseline that 99.9% of this counter chaotic action cohort could get behind. 

Though we can not yet identify any examples of a counter-chaotic event currently in motion against the Trump administration, there are examples of what that looks like in recent history in the world of startups. In the late 2000s, Airbnb and Uber were counter-chaos occurrences that transformed the world of lodging and taxis. People were paying to stay in strangers’ homes and get into strangers’ cars. (Ironically, both companies are Trump supporters.)

So, what would a similar orthogonal action be for creating counter chaos to resist the Trump administration?

Hello Chaos

When chaos first arrives, it needs to appear as if it were a random act of behavior even though it most definitely is not. 

The initial spark of chaos could be as banal as a tight-lipped politician giving more information than what was required when answering one of a reporter’s many questions. Afterwards, though you won’t know it was chaos by name, you will recall that there was a blip in time when you paused and thought, “Huh, that was unexpected.” And then that same sort of unexpected action happens again. And again. And then it’s become a recurrent behavior and you realize that is chaos acting with purpose and control.

The “huh, that was unexpected” blip of what is now the political chaos that stands before us: when Trump announced his 2016 presidential bid on an escalator in 2015. Sure, he had exhibited this pompous-ass behavior all over NYC and on reality shows for many years. But this was eerily different, somehow. His speech then is maddeningly prototypical of his speeches now.

Though he typically prefers speaking to the written word, except when he’s communicating via social media, his typical cadence has diminished over the years. A year before the escalator announcement, his typical cadence used to lean toward sentences comprising more than six words. People have taken notice of his shorter sentences and embrace of conspiracy theories which he puts forth as facts — all delivered off-script and conversational. 

So, if we’re going to get chaotic, we need to come up with a counter “Huh, that was unexpected” blip. Not just an “Oh, that’s a different approach,” like Senator Cory Booker’s record-breaking 25-hour speech on the Senate floor, nor the (still incredibly important) protests and marches — they were and are important but don’t qualify as unexpected or unusual. These actions are crucial because they maintain the counter energy and honor the work of our elected officials. But it’s not chaos. We need a full-on, “Huh, that was not only unexpected, that was bordering on a wildly  unforeseen” orchestrated moment in time. That’s what we need for full-on counter chaos to begin. 

A Prominent Characteristic of Chaos Theory

Chaotic events not only demand conditions to exist; there are also specific characteristics that all chaotic behaviors possess, and the one that blankets this administration and all its supporters is self-similarity. Its name seems self-explanatory, but in the context of chaos in real life, self-similar behavior isn’t merely an act of mimicking the behavioral (re)actions of those in leadership, it’s about a complete carbon-copy behavior modeled after one person. It is rhetoric filled with exaggerations and outright lies. It’s in the White House Press Secretary’s reports and in the claims made by each of his cabinet members.

And for those that are at the lowest echelons of the MAGA order, the self-similarity displayed in chaos scales proportionately, as if it’s all a part of one mega nesting doll. Though a MAGA follower may not be eyeing an entire country land grab, they continue to be emboldened to use violent and predatory language.

Math = Resistance

The navigation of any ongoing chaotic situation is a real-time risk and opportunity assessment. As with any sort of travel guide that builds from its previous editions, the more familiar you are with the map layout and its shorthand legend of actions, the more nimble you can be.

Chaos always wears its name badge boldly; there’s no mistaking it for run-of-the-mill disorder. In turn, you really do get to know what you’re dealing with, and intentional nudging can reach its long-term goal of pushing this current chaos off-course. Or, if you’re looking to launch your own chaotic trajectory, gaining insight and understanding on its behavioral pattern is something that can be taken advantage of, for the good of others.

When everything feels so chaotic, we can learn to embrace the chaos, think about it in a new way, see the pattern of actions it is showing us, and move forward to gain back our resilience and our power.