Foreign Affairs

BootinUp

(47,185 posts) Sat Apr 13, 2024, 01:10 PM Apr 13

Russia Is Buying Politicians in Europe. Is It Happening Here Too?

Which Republicans might they be referring to? Representative Ken Buck didn’t hesitate to point a finger at Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, saying on Monday, “Moscow Marjorie is focused now on this Ukraine issue and getting her talking points from the Kremlin and making sure that she is popular and she is getting a lot of coverage.”

They’re saying aloud what they once whispered behind closed doors. Back in 2016, when he was a Republican congressman but not yet House speaker, Kevin McCarthy said in a private meeting with GOP leaders, “There’s two people, I think, Putin pays: [Representative Dana] Rohrabacher and Trump … swear to God.” (Rohrabacher, once dubbed “Putin’s favorite congressman,” lost his seat in 2018.)

McCarthy, confronted with the leaked audio in 2017, claimed it was a joke. But anyone paying attention to how Russian intelligence services run influence operations—which I do, as a former CIA officer—knows it is anything but. It raises a legitimate, and deadly serious, question: Have Russian operatives paid any Republican officials?

Any donations that might have been made through anonymous LLCs to PACs—perhaps with attached quid pro quos—are likely to remain opaque, due to the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision. And we cannot say if the financial transactions we do know about are nefarious. But the pattern paints a disturbing picture, particularly given many House Republicans’ rabid opposition to Ukraine aid and Trump’s reported Ukraine peace plan, which would cede Crimea and parts of eastern Ukraine to Russia. A similar plan was floated by Paul Manafort, Trump’s 2016 campaign chairman, and his partner Konstantin Kilimnik, a Russian intelligence operative, during the 2016 election.

https://newrepublic.com/article/180630/russia-corruption-network-europe-buying-politicians-america

7 replies

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Highlight:

Russia Is Buying Politicians in Europe. Is It Happening Here Too? (Original Post) BootinUp Apr 13 OP

Is the CIA so stupid, this is only just occurring to them? Irish_Dem Apr 13 #1

The CIA is not legally allowed to function here in the US. Bitch at the FBI ... marble falls Apr 13 #2

The Russian ops in Europe are well known. Irish_Dem Apr 13 #3

I think many of us on DU and many in the government agencies have known about this for years. erronis Apr 13 #4

Hell yes. CanonRay Apr 13 #5

Does the sun come up in the east? niyad Apr 13 #6

Having now read the article. . . almost none of it comes as any niyad Apr 13 #7

Irish_Dem

(47,370 posts)

1. Is the CIA so stupid, this is only just occurring to them?

Reply to BootinUp (Original post)

Sat Apr 13, 2024, 01:16 PM

Apr 13

Good god.

A day late and a dollar short.

marble falls

(57,182 posts)

2. The CIA is not legally allowed to function here in the US. Bitch at the FBI ...

Reply to Irish_Dem (Reply #1)

Sat Apr 13, 2024, 01:21 PM

Apr 13

Here is the best, most open source of information about the planet.

https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/world/

Surf this, you'll find a lot of information in the Russia section about Russian operations in Europe.

Irish_Dem

(47,370 posts)

3. The Russian ops in Europe are well known.

Reply to marble falls (Reply #2)

Sat Apr 13, 2024, 01:53 PM

Apr 13

Putin has his puppets installed across Europe.
Same here in the US.

Reading this will probably curl my hair.

erronis

(15,328 posts)

4. I think many of us on DU and many in the government agencies have known about this for years.

Reply to BootinUp (Original post)

Sat Apr 13, 2024, 03:10 PM

Apr 13

Of course the russians (and chinese, israelis, etc.) buy access, buy propaganda outlets, buy power (legislatures and presidents).

Part of the problem as others have said is that the intelligence agencies (CIA, DIA, NSA, etc.) work apart from each other and from the enforcement organizations in the US (FBI, local/state). And we all know that some of these groups are also infiltrated. One good example is Gen. Michael Flynn at the DIA who is now known to be a russian operative. Or the head of the US Executive branch, Donald Trump who openly courts putin.

We all hope there is some behind-the-scenes magical organization working for only the benefit of Democracy who is keeping an eye on all of this and will swoop in at the last moment to save the day. (Un)fortunately, we do try to hew to the rule of law which, like democracy, can be compared to making sausage.