Here’s the plan as Putin sees it: Russia puts a ‘satellite nuke’ in space which could knock out our communications systems and grind our economy to a halt in an instant if detonated.
A new twist on the arms race in that it has a built-in work-around against mutually assured self-destruction.
Trump could use Putin’s threat to sell his decades-long infatuation with the diminutive dictator to his base who have been primed by the GOP to NOT view Russia as a threat for the last eight years.
The right wing’s chief propagandists spew Kremlin talking points into the ears of the sort of Americans drawn to Fox News and Tucker Carlson - and it is welcomed without so much as even minor pushback by their viewers.
That alone is staggering given the United States’ long and costly involvement in the Cold War.
Which since WWII has cost countless American lives and treasure; whether measured in wars by proxy or the loss of social and scientific progress in favor of a military-centric ethos.
The price we paid in the ‘American Century’ was staggering - and reshaped the world we live in.
The security we should have gained from that investment is now under threat in a way we have not seen before and it should be quite sobering.
The concept of appeasement to Putin, parroted in talking points like Carlson’s “I’m supposed to care about some city in Eastern Europe” or in the pro-Putin pablum of bad actors like JD Vance & Matt Gaetz, is as mind-numbing as it is antithetical to the American experiment.
The idea of letting Vladimir Putin do whatever he wants has now been deeply ingrained in the red-state MAGA mentality - after years of gas-lighting and of well-funded Russian disinformation campaigns and psychological-operations.
It has even spilled over into mainstream media and lazy, late night commentariats and their seemingly inexhaustible ability to focus on Biden’s ago over alarming global threats.
President Biden’s age is obviously a political vulnerability; in a perfect world he would be some idyllic middle age that comforted voters who seem suddenly overly concerned with age.
As if the Office of the President relies more on physical stamina than hard-won experience - and judicious and sober decision-making skills.
Last time I checked Franklin D. Roosevelt wasn’t competing in any triathlons during his time in the White House.
He did however expertly lead this nation out of the Great Depression and through D-Day, the largest military operation in the history of the world.
FDR was in poor physical condition and health the entire time; in our current political climate he would never have been a serious candidate, let alone elected president.
Can we really say with any confidence that would the modern media microscope would have been a good thing given how things eventually turned out for the ‘Greatest Generation’ and our country under FDR’s leadership?
They saved the free world - and came home and built the most powerful nation on earth.
The Greatest Generation began that turnaround and that journey being led by a man in a wheelchair who would sometimes fall asleep writing his name.
I am not arguing for infirmity as much as I am saying that anyone with even a vague ability to see the big picture understands BIDEN is the best option we have right now.
Even from a Democratic Convention and campaign logistics finance committee standpoint this is true, as was pointed out last week in a brilliant monologue by Lawrence O’Donnell.
But it is cheap and easy to cover Biden’s age over the complexities and real world threats of Putin’s decades-long influence campaign Russia has waged not only on the American electorate but on our culture itself.
That strategy is bearing fruit now and being amplified by a thousand social media influencers chasing algorithmic clout from monetized accounts and political action committees.
Which is then picked up and amplified by the MSM and ‘Daily Show’ crowds who thirst after the same demographic, while the tiger chases its tail.
It was easy to see from the beginning that the Hunter Biden-Burisma story was a Russian disinformation operation being propagated by the GOP.
We now have learned that was indeed the case, as the FBI arrested the chief witness in the Republicans’ sham impeachment of President Biden.
Programming on Fox News still runs Rep James Comer every night pushing his false accusations, no mention is made to the viewers of the arrest of Alexander Smirnov, their chief witness for lying to federal authorities: the disinformation flows unabated.
The point being - whoever lies the loudest wins in a political climate charged with emotion and short on facts.
Where hot takes and trending topics can be manipulated and disseminated by keystrokes and television and print media feels no need to alert viewers when they get it wrong.
Putin has become a master of manipulating the moment when it comes to American politics. He has been so successful for myriad reasons but none more so than his chief asset Donald J. Trump.
A man who has so thoroughly debased and neutered the Republican Party that the current Speaker of the House when skipping down to Mar-a-Lago this past Presidents’ Day to kiss Donald’s doll-sized ring (and perhaps super-sized posterior as well).
Speaker Johnson no doubt assured Trump of his intention to block aid to Ukraine which he has subsequently carried out.
An act of treason in a time of great peril for democracy: an unelected, twice impeached former President facing ninety-one criminal indictments, including stealing classified documents, making foreign policy decisions by proxy that benefit the world’s worst dictator.
It’s also worth noting that all the other candidates on that list, from Kim Jong-un to President Xi, are the recipients of constant praise and adoration from Trump on the campaign trail.
Blocking Ukraine funding or attempts to shut down our own government by the House GOP to score political points for Trump not only hurt this generation, it can have an effect that ripples out for generations; this fact is of no consequence to a man like Donald Trump.
The modern GOP has become a toxic circus - and the Republican senators and representatives have become his freaks.
The entire party is now built around serving Trump’s needs, which always have the cumulative effect of serving Putin’s needs as well, and that is very much by design.
Donald Trump sees the world as a place to loot and dominate.
He is more than happy to let Putin ‘Do whatever the hell he wants….’ if that will help him achieve his goals.
We are eight months away from an election that may be not only the most consequential of our lifetimes but for the fate of the free world.
This is not the time for self-seeking silliness.
Vote Blue.
Your posts on threads are simply incredible. I feel like I am reading a novel that is being written in real time. It is unlike any other type of writing. It is a new genre, and you are the creator of it. Your insider knowledge and writing skills combine to create this surreal reality. I just want to say thank you.
Woodrow Wilson suffered a stroke while in office and his wife ran things on the down low. Reagan developed Alzheimer’s and Nancy held it together. JFK had Addison's and chronic back pain. I think Biden’s SOTU was a disaster for the naysayers. Mike the muppet sat behind him nodding and grimacing. The fact that the Republican members headed for the exits PDQ and Ms Britt’s rebuttal from the kitchen were telling a story. Russias economy is struggling. Not circling the drain yet but inflation means regular folks are limited in the food they can buy. Putin is rotten jealous of America. I wish these cultists could wake up and realize how this evil troll is using American politicians to destroy a great nation.