When volumes slow at ports, the ripple effects are felt everywhere, from longshoremen getting fewer hours working on docks, to truck drivers who suddenly don't have any cargo to move.
The infrastructure to educate and entice manufacturing workers simply doesn't exist, while the Trump administration has sought to deport the very people who would want those jobs the most.
A relatively new technology that promises to slash energy consumption and capital expense stands to revolutionize battery design and manufacturing for electric vehicles.
Any number of obstacles could throw a relief mission off course, and mitigating those potential roadblocks takes equal parts preparation and an ability to recalibrate on the fly.