Author Archives: oinsketta

Putinism and Trumpism (sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g)

I heard a great podcast yesterday from someone I’ve never heard of, she calls herself the Politics Girl.  She makes all the connections between Manafort, Trump and Putin and outlines Putin’s long-term psy-ops plan, a deliberate and clever information war to sow discord and violent division to destabilize “the West” dating back a decade or more. 

Manafort, of course, worked for a years to the get corrupt pro-Russian, anti-Nato Putinist Viktor Yanukovych, elected president of Ukraine. In 2004 then-Prime Minister Yanukovych lost a second run-off election for president after the first runoff was marked by massive fraud on his behalf. [1] In the new runoff election demanded by the “Orange Revolution”, and ordered by the Ukrainian court, Yanukovych lost 52% to 44% to a candidate who had been poisoned with a high tech toxin during the campaign (and lived) [2]. Paul Manafort arrived too late to swing the 2004 election to Putin’s man, but after six years of grooming the the savvy political dirty trickster helped Yanukovych win the presidency in 2010, only to see him ousted for corruption by a popular uprising, the “Orange Revolution”.  Putin, who had annexed Crimea earlier in 2014 was furious at the setback, and kicked up his radical psy ops/disinformation war against democracy.

Soon after Yanukovych’s ouster Manafort, of course, still in contact with pro-Putin oligarchs in Russia and Ukraine, was managing Trump’s campaign for free. Manafort was in a Trump Tower conference room for that “dirt on Hillary, I love it!” meeting with Don. Jr., Jared Kushner and the Russian lawyer and also, according to Marco Rubio’s Senate Committee, had many communications with and gave sensitive polling data (about key states that would be narrowly won by Trump) to a GRU agent named Konstantin Kilimnik.   The Politics Girl describes Putin’s long psychological war, and his skillful use of social media, including innovative work with bot farms to convince Americans that millions followed Trump early on. Putin did much to effectively sow discord in the US and other western democracies (he did similar yeoman-like work on Brexit). She sadly concludes he did a great job convincing that volatile 39% of our countrymen that lies are truth, that the true enemy of good Americans are anti-fascists and anti-racists, that Putin good, Ukraine bad, that only Trump can save them, etc.   I need to transcribe several sections of that longish talk, there is some great stuff in there, very well-said.

Here’s a slice, from about ten minutes in, explaining why so many on the right are suddenly fans of Putin’s, and support mob violence to oust dangerous radical far-left Communist Joe Biden, after laying out the predicate stuff beautifully:

The whole segment is here.

[1] from Wikipedia

Between the two rounds of the election, dramatic increases in turnout were recorded in Yanukovych-supporting regions, while Yushchenko-supporting regions recorded the same turnout or lower than recorded in the first round. This effect was most marked in eastern Ukraine and especially in Yanukovych’s stronghold of Donetsk Oblast, where a turnout of 98.5% was reportedly claimed—more than 40% up from the first round.[2][3] In some districts, turnout was recorded to be more than 100% than the previous ballot, with one district reported by observers to have recorded a 127% turnout.[2][3] According to election observers and post-election investigations, pro-Yanukovych activists traveled around the country and voted many times as absentees.[2][3] Some groups dependent on government assistance, such as students, hospital patients and prisoners, were told to vote for the government candidate.[7]

[2] Despite his poisoning Yushchenko survived and won the election by a wide margin:

Manafort arrived in Ukraine in the wake of the Orange Revolution, a popular uprising that had blocked the pro-Russian Yanukovych from taking power in 2004. One of the leaders of that revolt, an economist named Viktor Yushchenko, fell suddenly ill as his movement for European integration was gaining momentum that fall; doctors determined that he had been poisoned with dioxin, a substance that turned his telegenic face into a mask of green and yellow scars.

https://time.com/5003623/paul-manafort-mueller-indictment-ukraine-russia/

Draw the line between Paul Manafort and Volodymyr Zelensky

A short and pretty straight line it is, actually.

Paul Manafort worked, for years grooming the preferred Ukrainian presidential candidate of Putin and the oligarchs, an oligarch-friendly, pro-Russian brute named Yanukovych. Manafort worked for these oligarchs for years, finally getting their man elected. Soon enough Yanokovich became notorious for his corruption and collusion with Putin. He became so hated in Ukraine that a mass uprising of Ukrainians drove him from power in 2014.

Democratic elections were held to fill the presidency vacated by Putin’s friend, who took refuge with Putin while being convicted in absentia by Ukrainian courts. A well-known Ukrainian politician was elected to serve the rest of Yanakovich’s term.

Manafort, a clever man of refined tastes who apparently loves wearing clothing made from the skins of exotic endangered species, found himself in desperate need of money and volunteered to work as Donald Trump’s campign manager, for free, no strings attched. Manafort knew from past experience (his long partnership with Rodger Stone) how lucrative it was to be able to give access to the current. U.S. president, he’d been doing it since Reagan. Working for free to get Trump elected, with guaranteed access, seemed like a win-win for Paul Manafort, until his many connections with Putin and Russian oligarchs became known and he was forced to step down as Trump’s campaign manager. He was later replaced by members of the secretive right-wing Council for National Policy, Steve Bannon and Kellyanne Conway (Ginni Thomas is also a member) . These were who Trump was talking about when he said he got the best people, the best people.

Meanwhile, in Ukraine,Volodymyr Zelensky, a popular Jewish comedian, trained as a lawyer, was elected in 2019 by write-in vote, with a 73% majority. Zelensky was the young, brand new democratically elected president of Ukraine as the embattled Trump was gearing up for the Rigged 2020 Election while transacting assorted quid pro quo pardons with Manafort, Roger Stone and others, for their help obstructong investigations into his shady activities and connections with Putin. Putin was threatening the Ukraine border and Zelensky, the new president, was awaiting the weapons that the US Congress had already approved for sale to Ukraine. There was the little matter of just a small favor though and within a few months after being outed by treasonous whistleblowers (Barr’s attempt to quash the legally required investigation of the perfect shake down call having failed) the president released the aid to Ukraine that he is now bragging about giving them back in 2019.

Paul Manafort, pardoned felon. No harm, no foul, he kept his mouth shut to protect his boss, and it’s all good. Zelensky is parrying Putin’s assassination attempts as his country is bombed and Manafort’s friends continue to support Putin. Some are even featured on Russia’s state TV.

“strength” versus “weakness” American style

In a smash-mouth culture like ours, ruled by the pernicious myth of the rugged individual, someone who prevails to get billions, after receiving nothing but a modest several million dollar head start, strength is seen as decisiveness (no matter how bad the decision), a willingness to discuss, deliberate and compromise before acting is seen as a vice of the weak.

Strength here is an unhesitating punch in the fucking face. Weakness, pausing to consider the effects of giving in to a strong desire to punch somebody in the fucking face.

The party of Trump has no hesitation to talk about building more gallows, executing traitors, torturing the families of terrorists (as long as they are Muslim terrorists, of course). This kind of tough talk makes frightened people feel strong. You join the lynch mob and now you are powerful, nobody can fuck with you, especially if you are armed and law enforcement is on your side.

You know what strength is here? The power to overturn a 98 to nothing Senate vote to reauthorize the Voting Rights Act, signed by a president who shares your conservative views, with an ideologically driven opinion pulled directly from your asshole. Strength is the ability to keep lying to angry crowds, whipping them into a frenzy while pointing out you have never been charged with any crime, ever. Weakness is finding yourself having to explain why no action can be taken yet to stop an insane, violent cheerleader for violence. The “strong” party would be howling to lynch anybody like that on the other side.

This false and prevalent notion of strength and weakness is only possible in a culture where most people have lost the ability to make critical distinctions about anything; a culture where ruthless wealthy bullies are seen as heroes. Well done, Charles Koch.

In the days before Reagan ended the Fairness Doctrine the Soviet propaganda network was called Pravda, which translates to “truth”. By a surreal coincidence the compulsive liar Donald Trump’s new post-truth social media app is called, in Russian, Pravda. Very strong, sir!

Call and response — keep it simple

Glenn Kirschner breaks it down very simply these days. Three dates, three incriminating statements, a plan, coordinated actions taken in furtherance of the plan, all the elements of conspiracy to disrupt an official proceeding and other felonies.

Trump recruits a private army, activates them for a future date and launches them January 6th to attack Congress and stop the proceedings, to prevent the constitutional transfer of power. On January 6 Trump’s mob stopped all business in the Capitol after violently assaulting police and breaching the building.

September 29th 2020, Trump shows up at debate with Biden infectious with covid-19, lying about his test results (he’ll be helicoptered to a hospital for emergency covid treatment a few days later) spewing toward a hated opponent in the most vulnerable demographic for death by covid, looks into the camera and grimly says “Proud Boys stand back and stand by.” The Proud Boys shout back at him with gusto for his shout out to them.

December 18, 2020 he activates his most violently inclined followers to assemble on January 6th to fight election fraud. He ends a tweet repeatedly touting knowingly false stolen elections claims with a personal invitation “Be there, will be wild.” They again shout back at him approvingly.

On January 6, 2021 when all these guys show up for a wild time, he launches them toward the Capitol, warning them “we fight like hell. And if you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore.”

Is more proof required to show the desperate defeated candidate’s criminal intent to solicit and unleash a private army to commit this federal crime? More proof needed of a deliberate, premeditated, coordinated action plan and many acts done to carry it out? Merrick? Are we all missing something here?

Another giant of the Senate

A reminder of this great American statesman and defender of democracy, from today’s Washington Post:

Even before Jan. 6 itself, Graham had evaluated and rejected Trump’s claims about fraud. A scene in the Bob Woodward and Robert Costa book “Peril” depicts aide Lee Holmes discussing with Graham purported evidence of fraud passed along by the White House in a series of memos.

“Holmes found the sloppiness, the overbearing tone of certainty, and the inconsistencies disqualifying. The three memos added up to nothing. …”
“Holmes reported to Graham that the data in the memos were a concoction, with a bullying tone and eighth grade writing.”


“Graham looked over the memos. ‘Third grade,’ he said.

Holmes said part of the claim was based on an affidavit.

“Graham said, ‘I can get an affidavit tomorrow saying the world is flat.’ “

You sure enough can, Lindsey, thousands of ’em.