Pandering To Putin
An existential threat
There are few people in the world today who hate America more than Vladimir Putin.
He delights in our disunity, savors our shortsightedness, and exploits the erosion of our democratic freedoms.
He is motivated by a vengeful desire to destroy the United States and the world order our nation both represents and buttresses.
Over many years, Putin has carefully cultivated useful fools in our midst who are eager to do his bidding. His greatest success in this category, by far, is the previous president, whose reasons for capitulating to and groveling before the Russian tyrant are not entirely clear.
But whatever motivates Trump, the effects of his determination to placate Putin are imperiling global stability.
It is impossible to rank all of the outrages that swirl around the likely Republican nominee for president (sort of like counting his lies). But this issue and what it means for Ukraine, NATO, and the world more generally must be given the attention it is due. Because even if Trump is not elected, the harm he is doing right now could be irreversible.
I am old enough to remember when the surest footing for bipartisan agreement was decrying foreign tyranny. There was a knee-jerk abhorrence of dictators among the leaders of both of our major political parties. Appeasement was tantamount almost to treason. Perhaps failed United Kingdom prime minister Neville Chamberlain's disastrous dealings with Hitler on the eve of World War II were a folly too recent to be ignored.
Sometimes, these national instincts led to dangerous overreactions and epic tragedies such as the Vietnam War, adventurism in Latin America, and the war in Iraq.
But the situation in Ukraine is entirely different. A democracy is under attack from a powerful foreign neighbor. The war has the potential to threaten other parts of Europe. No one is asking for a commitment of American servicemen and servicewomen. What is needed are funds, significant funds to be sure, to support Ukraine and thus stand alongside our allies in repelling Russian aggression.
As members of both parties have noted, this is a relatively small down payment to further our core democratic interests on the world stage. It also sends a strong message to other provocateurs like Iran, China, and North Korea. There is no dispute among serious-minded people that supporting Ukraine is essential.
That would be enough if not for a faction in this country beholden to Trump and the impudence he embodies. That is why Ukrainian aid is imperiled in Congress even though it would likely pass overwhelmingly in a secret vote. Republican politicians know that their party's leader, and thus their base, are cheerleaders for autocracy.
And they are more afraid of Trump than they are of Putin.
Trump famously said, "I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn't lose any voters." His BFF Putin has put a version of that boast into violent effect. Through poisonings, defenestrations, and countless other murderous methods for eliminating political foes, the former KGB agent feels he can operate without any consequences for his actions (sound familiar?). The latest tragic example, of course, is the death of the courageous opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
The press has marked Trump's coziness to the Kremlin and his natterings over NATO, but I worry that they still are reluctant to frame the complete picture: This is an existential threat.
There was a time when Republicans couldn't get enough of castigating people for supposedly selling out America. Remember "Hanoi Jane" (Fonda) and "Swift Boat" John Kerry? Well, the allegations behind these nicknames, exaggerated and fabricated, pale next to the work Trump and his MAGA minions are doing to damage the United States.
So we have the likes of '"Duma Donald," Tucker "Kremlin Carlson," "Moscow Mike" Johnson, and all of the other Republicans who like to wrap themselves in the American flag and bang on their chests while claiming the mantle of "patriots."
And all the while, they are busy aiding and abetting the enemy.
Elliot, the contrast between how Republicans in the past viewed Jane Fonda or stigmatized John Kerry is in striking contrast to how they might characterize themselves if they ever looked in the mirror. Of all the esteemed commentators out there, you are the first to point out this glaring hypocrisy. But the bigger question is what is behind this shift in the mindset of too many Americans that they no longer treasure democracy and how do we reverse that problem? Maybe you can train your keen insight on that topic soon.
If Trump is so enamored with Putin and Russia why doesn’t he move there? And he can take Tucker Carlson with him…..that way they can shop in those “clean supermarkets where you get a $100 worth of stuff that would cost 3x the price in the US”. And they can ride on those “new and sparkling subway trains” that Moscow has. Just make sure they get a one way ticket.