Here is the simpler explanation: Putin, Iran, and Trump are all on the same side —-Team Chaos Benefits Russia.
$6.9B Russian oil revenue in two weeks. Patriots burning in Gulf instead of defending Ukraine. World attention off Ukraine war. U.S. preventive war validates Putin’s Ukraine invasion. Oil $100 while Trump lifts Russian sanctions and refuses to criticize Putin despite Russian targeting intel killing Americans. Then Tdumbo gets rid of sanctions on Iranian oil?! So bomb them, then give them money to protect from you bombing them and bomb them again?
It’s all Farce! Get it! All of this is a big joke on us, we have to suffer because of these fools in power.
And The “enemy of my enemy is my friend” confusion clears up when you realize Trump isn’t fighting Putin’s enemies, he’s executing Putin’s strategy. Iran gets Russian intel, Russia gets oil windfall and sanctions relief, Trump gets permanent crisis for authoritarian consolidation. Every outcome benefits Moscow.
You’re right Trump should punish Putin for helping Iran. But Trump’s not the protagonist in this story, he’s the mechanism. Putin, Iran, and Trump: all enemies of American interests, all profiting from the same war.
None of these so called US experts want to admit that or the fact that their favorite Occupier Israel is working with Putin. Their cold war thinking has destroyed the USA!
Nah. Screw republicans. All of them. Whomever continues to support trump has identified themselves as an enemy of our fragile democracy, and must be harshly dealt with. No mercy.
Re. Johan, your analysis is the best summary I have seen that explains the underlying subtext of each and every maneuvering done in last 30 days by Trump, Putin and their oligarch friends and enablers.
Worse is yet to come. The U.S. has said that Russian tankers cannot supply Cuba, even though two are on the way. Someone in the administration also said no to a Russian proposal that they would stop supplying intelligence to Iran if we did the same with Ukraine. I can already see Putin's talking points for his next call with Trump.
Meanwhile, the 11th MEU departed Camp Pendleton two days ago, bound for the Persian Gulf, possibly for a very risky assault on Kharg Island in three weeks or so.
Brent and WTI futures are slowly rising, but contracts for immediate delivery are already stratospheric, with prices topping $180/bbl. Jet fuel is particularly in demand, and there is a possibility that some European airlines will have to start grounding jets.
And don’t forget that Trump is intent on supporting and helping the US oil industry & the US oil majors, who benefit from the higher oil price at the expense of the US oil consumers, who of course have to have to pray more for their gas at the pump etc. Big oil has money to spend on lobbying and has offered large amounts to Trump and I guess his family to securing election success.
FatHitler is Putin’s dumbest “friend.” Trump was in deep with the NYC mafia until the Russian mob took the city over from the Italians in the 90’s. He’s been a shill & asset for Russia ever since.
Rewatching The Manchurian Candidate & Wag The Dog today. If only Susie Wiles was as masterfully manipulative as Angela Lansbury & could control the boy King’s criminal, violent & brainless impulses.
“…“The last person we need help from is Zelenskyy,” Trump told Meet the Press. Thankfully, several American partner countries in the Middle East have accepted assistance from Ukrainian drone experts.“
Any chance those ME countries will help Ukraine financially (or otherwise) in gratitude for their anti-drone assistance? If Mr McFaul could provide a deeper analysis it would be most helpful. Thank you in advance.
Read the transcript of Senator Whitehouse’s speech on the floor of the Senate on March 5. Trump is clearly compromised by Putin and the KGB via Epstein recordings.
There is a highly plausible scenario that Putin has the goods on Trump since Trump visited Russia for a Miss Universe beauty pageant and there were rumors of Orange Highness shenanigans, misappropriate behavior with number of women. Even his wife at the time Ivanka had spoken about it in media afterwards and leveraged it in their divorce settlement. However, pictures and videos alleged to be in existence were buried by KGB (guess who!!).
I wish someone hacks the KGB archives or Putin decides to bury Trump for once and for all to rid the biggest menace to the world.
I am at a loss as to why you would get this wrong. Hamas, Hezbollah and Venezuela offered little that would interest Putin. The prospect of seeing the Straights of Hormuz closed on the other hand, was "Manna from heaven". Putin is an easy read. Krasnov is both a useful idiot AND compromised.
Putin talks to Trump by phone on Monday March 9. Russia & China abstain on UN Security Council vote to censure Iran on Wednesday. That was strategic. It cost Putin nothing. You can be sure it was already discussed with Iran BEFORE the Putin/Trump call. On that call with Trump, Putin likely agreed to not use his veto and to prevail upon Zi not to use his. In return Trump is persuaded to lift Russian oil sanctions and it happens on Thursday. Trump blasts Zelenskyy on Friday and Saturday. Putin sets traps with the right bait. Just like he did with Obama in that corner in St Petersburg.
Meanwhile Russia & China feed targeting information to Iran.
What surprises so many observers reveals less about Iran than about the poverty of the categories used to contain it. Under the old Weltbild, power was supposed to remain legible, measurable, obedient to inherited assumptions. Yet history, sub specie historiae, rarely grants that comfort. Iran appears instead as a force of accumulated memory, strategic patience, and ideological depth, a state whose gravity resembles something larger than a state, almost planetary in the way it bends events into its orbit.
Yes, it is too late for Trump to reverse course. Too much damage has been done. Trump’s decision to go to war without any understanding of the potential consequences is the same reason Trump will not reverse course. More delusions, more death and destruction, not just in the immediate war, but in all the deaths that will occur over the next two decades due to the lack of energy to keep the heat on. The amount of human misery globally that’s waiting for us will not be able to be contained. All because 77 million Americans couldn’t be bothered to do some research before they put Trump back in power and 80+ million Americans didn’t vote at all.
Here is the simpler explanation: Putin, Iran, and Trump are all on the same side —-Team Chaos Benefits Russia.
$6.9B Russian oil revenue in two weeks. Patriots burning in Gulf instead of defending Ukraine. World attention off Ukraine war. U.S. preventive war validates Putin’s Ukraine invasion. Oil $100 while Trump lifts Russian sanctions and refuses to criticize Putin despite Russian targeting intel killing Americans. Then Tdumbo gets rid of sanctions on Iranian oil?! So bomb them, then give them money to protect from you bombing them and bomb them again?
It’s all Farce! Get it! All of this is a big joke on us, we have to suffer because of these fools in power.
And The “enemy of my enemy is my friend” confusion clears up when you realize Trump isn’t fighting Putin’s enemies, he’s executing Putin’s strategy. Iran gets Russian intel, Russia gets oil windfall and sanctions relief, Trump gets permanent crisis for authoritarian consolidation. Every outcome benefits Moscow.
You’re right Trump should punish Putin for helping Iran. But Trump’s not the protagonist in this story, he’s the mechanism. Putin, Iran, and Trump: all enemies of American interests, all profiting from the same war.
Pattern visible, trajectory locked.
None of these so called US experts want to admit that or the fact that their favorite Occupier Israel is working with Putin. Their cold war thinking has destroyed the USA!
I believe Putin has the unredacted Epstein files and most important the photos which can’t be labeled as baseless
I agree. I think Iran and Israel do as well
Stop the madness and convince your republican colleagues to grow a spine. Congress is supposed to be a guardrail against this abuse of power!
Nah. Screw republicans. All of them. Whomever continues to support trump has identified themselves as an enemy of our fragile democracy, and must be harshly dealt with. No mercy.
Pipe dream right here. That’s not going to happen. Weak men with zero integrity
Mr Putin has the goods on trump! 😡😡😡😡😡
Re. Johan, your analysis is the best summary I have seen that explains the underlying subtext of each and every maneuvering done in last 30 days by Trump, Putin and their oligarch friends and enablers.
🤮🤮🤮🤮🤬🤬🤬🤬
Worse is yet to come. The U.S. has said that Russian tankers cannot supply Cuba, even though two are on the way. Someone in the administration also said no to a Russian proposal that they would stop supplying intelligence to Iran if we did the same with Ukraine. I can already see Putin's talking points for his next call with Trump.
Meanwhile, the 11th MEU departed Camp Pendleton two days ago, bound for the Persian Gulf, possibly for a very risky assault on Kharg Island in three weeks or so.
Brent and WTI futures are slowly rising, but contracts for immediate delivery are already stratospheric, with prices topping $180/bbl. Jet fuel is particularly in demand, and there is a possibility that some European airlines will have to start grounding jets.
Welcome to Trump's world.
Buy BNO and make money off of their chaos, I’m certain this entire regime is in on the money game!
What a complete farce.
By the way, I’m a former FSO too.
“War is a racket!” (Major Gen. Smedley D. Butler USMC)
With Trump, you never know what he'll get up to on the weekend. Maybe Monday is soon enough to go long.
Good point…craziness.
And one thing about Trump it’s always worse than it seems
And don’t forget that Trump is intent on supporting and helping the US oil industry & the US oil majors, who benefit from the higher oil price at the expense of the US oil consumers, who of course have to have to pray more for their gas at the pump etc. Big oil has money to spend on lobbying and has offered large amounts to Trump and I guess his family to securing election success.
I can think of only one reason Trump is so loyal to Putin- it is called blackmail.
Our enemy is the POTUS.
FatHitler is Putin’s dumbest “friend.” Trump was in deep with the NYC mafia until the Russian mob took the city over from the Italians in the 90’s. He’s been a shill & asset for Russia ever since.
Rewatching The Manchurian Candidate & Wag The Dog today. If only Susie Wiles was as masterfully manipulative as Angela Lansbury & could control the boy King’s criminal, violent & brainless impulses.
shitler
“…“The last person we need help from is Zelenskyy,” Trump told Meet the Press. Thankfully, several American partner countries in the Middle East have accepted assistance from Ukrainian drone experts.“
Any chance those ME countries will help Ukraine financially (or otherwise) in gratitude for their anti-drone assistance? If Mr McFaul could provide a deeper analysis it would be most helpful. Thank you in advance.
Read the transcript of Senator Whitehouse’s speech on the floor of the Senate on March 5. Trump is clearly compromised by Putin and the KGB via Epstein recordings.
There is a highly plausible scenario that Putin has the goods on Trump since Trump visited Russia for a Miss Universe beauty pageant and there were rumors of Orange Highness shenanigans, misappropriate behavior with number of women. Even his wife at the time Ivanka had spoken about it in media afterwards and leveraged it in their divorce settlement. However, pictures and videos alleged to be in existence were buried by KGB (guess who!!).
I wish someone hacks the KGB archives or Putin decides to bury Trump for once and for all to rid the biggest menace to the world.
I am at a loss as to why you would get this wrong. Hamas, Hezbollah and Venezuela offered little that would interest Putin. The prospect of seeing the Straights of Hormuz closed on the other hand, was "Manna from heaven". Putin is an easy read. Krasnov is both a useful idiot AND compromised.
Putin talks to Trump by phone on Monday March 9. Russia & China abstain on UN Security Council vote to censure Iran on Wednesday. That was strategic. It cost Putin nothing. You can be sure it was already discussed with Iran BEFORE the Putin/Trump call. On that call with Trump, Putin likely agreed to not use his veto and to prevail upon Zi not to use his. In return Trump is persuaded to lift Russian oil sanctions and it happens on Thursday. Trump blasts Zelenskyy on Friday and Saturday. Putin sets traps with the right bait. Just like he did with Obama in that corner in St Petersburg.
Meanwhile Russia & China feed targeting information to Iran.
And one of Trump’s favorite words is treason
You could not possibly have created a fictional President that has done as much to harm the country and had anyone believe you.
What you don't like the bounties he put on our troops in Afghanistan?
And he's doing it again.
He's got Kompromat on the Pedophile.
What surprises so many observers reveals less about Iran than about the poverty of the categories used to contain it. Under the old Weltbild, power was supposed to remain legible, measurable, obedient to inherited assumptions. Yet history, sub specie historiae, rarely grants that comfort. Iran appears instead as a force of accumulated memory, strategic patience, and ideological depth, a state whose gravity resembles something larger than a state, almost planetary in the way it bends events into its orbit.
Yes, it is too late for Trump to reverse course. Too much damage has been done. Trump’s decision to go to war without any understanding of the potential consequences is the same reason Trump will not reverse course. More delusions, more death and destruction, not just in the immediate war, but in all the deaths that will occur over the next two decades due to the lack of energy to keep the heat on. The amount of human misery globally that’s waiting for us will not be able to be contained. All because 77 million Americans couldn’t be bothered to do some research before they put Trump back in power and 80+ million Americans didn’t vote at all.
Americans voted! Their votes weren’t counted!
https://thiswillhold.substack.com/p/she-won-they-didnt-just-change-the?r=z0890&utm_medium=ios
And, Tump is helping Putin! This is called Treason.
I agree with Johan's take....Trump is on Putin's side, so I'm afraid McFaul's 'Cold War era' analysis is no longer fit for purpose....
If you’re anti-war you should be on the side of Russia supporting Iran defend itself against unprovoked aggression.
Also Putin offered to stop helping Iran in exchange of the US cutting off Ukraine. I think that’s a fair deal.
Like Trump, Putin says the opposite of what he’s thinking.
Trump continues to suck his d..k