theguardian--2020-06-27--Masha Gessen: 'I never thought I'd say it, but Trump is worse than Putin'

Masha Gessen is a Russian-American author and journalist who has been writing about Vladimir Putin and other modern autocrats for two decades .
After Donald Trump was elected president of the United States in 2016 , they wrote an essay in the New York Review of Books arguing that it was folly to regard him as a regular politician and predicting that he would attempt to transform America into a Putin-style autocracy .
Gessen ’ s new book , Surviving Autocracy , demonstrates how Trump has come closer to achieving autocratic rule than most people would have thought possible .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ having come to pass ?
If you look at the essay , I think it holds up awfully well , unfortunately .
There ’ s nothing in it that I would walk back .
At the same time , a lot of the things that have happened in the past three years have shocked me .
Such as ?
The latest scene with the bible in front of St John ’ s church , for instance .
The iconography of that , including the clearing of the square with tear gas , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Who ’ s worse , Putin or Trump ?
In a way , I think Trump is worse .
I never thought I would hear myself say that .
They share a lot of characteristics although they are temperamentally extremely different men .
They both have this contempt for excellence , they both have a hatred of government , and they both have this way of campaigning against government as such , even as presidents of their respective countries .
I think in the end , Putin is somewhat less cynical .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ self-aggrandising and absurd on the face of it – that if he stepped away Russia would fall apart and so he has to carry this burden .
And for his labours he deserves to have the yachts and the palaces and all that .
But he is doing it for his country .
Trump doesn ’ t even have that delusion .
It ’ s all power and money in their purest form .
And you could dig as deep as you want , you would never find a shred of responsibility .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the electoral system , the judiciary , the free press – to save them from Trump ’ s autocracy ?
There ’ s a way in which Americans think about our institutions as a kind of religion .
There ’ s a faith in the wisdom of the founding fathers who put down these sacred words , this idea that we have the perfect self-repairing system and it will run in perpetuity if we don ’ t spoil it .
The problem is that many of these institutions are enshrined in political culture @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of them depend on the good faith of the people running them to fulfil their purpose and uphold the constitution .
So when someone like Trump becomes president , the institutions become vulnerable .
As an example , I think we have seen in the last couple of weeks just how effective Trump ’ s attempts to weaken the national press have been .
How so ?
I am talking about the way that the police throughout the country have brutally targeted the media during the Black Lives Matter protests .
That ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ foreign correspondent in war zones where there was really no sense of any kind of rules or laws .
This happened because for the past four years Trump has been vilifying the media , portraying the media as the enemy of the people , as part of the problem , as part of the great conspiracy to unseat him .
And that ’ s very terrifying .
You were born in Russia , spent your teenage years in America then moved back to Moscow as an adult .
Do you feel more Russian @ @ @ @ @ @ @ really work that way .
But when you have emigrated as often as I have , you learn the benefits of being an outsider .
I am very comfortable not belonging .
I find it extremely beneficial to my work as a journalist to be highly attuned to this culture yet at the same time hovering outside of it .
I do sometimes bristle at this idea people have that my having been born in Russia qualifies me to talk about Donald Trump .
I ’ d rather people said 25 years of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Donald Trump .
What is the most important rule for surviving autocracy ?
For the state of one ’ s soul , for the state of one ’ s mind , I think it is absolutely essential to protest and show outrage .
Does that have political consequences ?
Not immediately and not on its own .
But I think what we ’ re seeing in America right now is several steps on from outrage .
It ’ s outrage , plus organising , plus sustained political activity .
The big question is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it is sustained in some manner , then I think we are in a revolutionary moment .
In the book I talk about how in order to actually survive Trump ’ s attempt at autocracy we have to give up the idea of some imaginary pre-Trumpian normalcy and commit to reinvention .
And that is really what these protests are about .
I don ’ t think there is anyone who is involved who would say : “ Oh , we just have to get rid of Trump.
” These protests are about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this democracy and that ’ s a really upsetting idea for a lot of somewhat conservative commentators .
But culturally and politically Americans have a story of being born of protest .
These protests are calling for an American reinvention .
They are protesting for a more perfect union .
• Surviving Autocracy by Masha Gessen is published by Granta ( £12 ) .
To order a copy for go to guardianbookshop.com .
Free UK p & p over £15

Masha Gessen is a Russian-American author and journalist who has been writing about Vladimir Putin and other modern autocrats for two decades. After Donald Trump was elected president of the United States in 2016, they wrote an essay in the New York Review of Books arguing that it was folly to regard him as a regular politician and predicting that he would attempt to transform America into a Putin-style autocracy. Gessen’s new book, Surviving Autocracy, demonstrates how Trump has come closer to achieving autocratic rule than most people would have thought possible.
How do you feel about your predictions having come to pass?
If you look at the essay, I think it holds up awfully well, unfortunately. There’s nothing in it that I would walk back. At the same time, a lot of the things that have happened in the past three years have shocked me.
Such as?
The latest scene with the bible in front of St John’s church, for instance. The iconography of that, including the clearing of the square with tear gas, the Black Hawk helicopters – it was chilling.
Who’s worse, Putin or Trump?
In a way, I think Trump is worse. I never thought I would hear myself say that. They share a lot of characteristics although they are temperamentally extremely different men. They both have this contempt for excellence, they both have a hatred of government, and they both have this way of campaigning against government as such, even as presidents of their respective countries. I think in the end, Putin is somewhat less cynical. He has an idea – it is self-aggrandising and absurd on the face of it – that if he stepped away Russia would fall apart and so he has to carry this burden. And for his labours he deserves to have the yachts and the palaces and all that. But he is doing it for his country. Trump doesn’t even have that delusion. It’s all power and money in their purest form. And you could dig as deep as you want, you would never find a shred of responsibility.
Masha Gessen. Photograph: Christopher Lane/The Observer
Can Americans rely on their institutions – the electoral system, the judiciary, the free press – to save them from Trump’s autocracy?
There’s a way in which Americans think about our institutions as a kind of religion. There’s a faith in the wisdom of the founding fathers who put down these sacred words, this idea that we have the perfect self-repairing system and it will run in perpetuity if we don’t spoil it. The problem is that many of these institutions are enshrined in political culture rather than in law, and all of them depend on the good faith of the people running them to fulfil their purpose and uphold the constitution. So when someone like Trump becomes president, the institutions become vulnerable. As an example, I think we have seen in the last couple of weeks just how effective Trump’s attempts to weaken the national press have been.
How so?
I am talking about the way that the police throughout the country have brutally targeted the media during the Black Lives Matter protests. That’s something that I saw as a foreign correspondent in war zones where there was really no sense of any kind of rules or laws. This happened because for the past four years Trump has been vilifying the media, portraying the media as the enemy of the people, as part of the problem, as part of the great conspiracy to unseat him. And that’s very terrifying.
You were born in Russia, spent your teenage years in America then moved back to Moscow as an adult. Do you feel more Russian or American?
It doesn’t really work that way. But when you have emigrated as often as I have, you learn the benefits of being an outsider. I am very comfortable not belonging. I find it extremely beneficial to my work as a journalist to be highly attuned to this culture yet at the same time hovering outside of it. I do sometimes bristle at this idea people have that my having been born in Russia qualifies me to talk about Donald Trump. I’d rather people said 25 years of studying totalitarianism qualifies me to talk about Donald Trump.
A Trump supporter makes his feelings clear at a campaign rally in Nevada in 2016. Photograph: Ethan Miller/Getty
What is the most important rule for surviving autocracy?
For the state of one’s soul, for the state of one’s mind, I think it is absolutely essential to protest and show outrage. Does that have political consequences? Not immediately and not on its own. But I think what we’re seeing in America right now is several steps on from outrage. It’s outrage, plus organising, plus sustained political activity. The big question is how sustained will it be? If it is sustained in some manner, then I think we are in a revolutionary moment. In the book I talk about how in order to actually survive Trump’s attempt at autocracy we have to give up the idea of some imaginary pre-Trumpian normalcy and commit to reinvention. And that is really what these protests are about.
I don’t think there is anyone who is involved who would say: “Oh, we just have to get rid of Trump.” These protests are about the fatal flaw at the root of this democracy and that’s a really upsetting idea for a lot of somewhat conservative commentators. But culturally and politically Americans have a story of being born of protest. These protests are calling for an American reinvention. They are protesting for a more perfect union.


theguardian--2020-06-28--South Carolina congressman Jim Clyburn: 'If Biden doesn't win, US democracy will crumble'

South Carolina congressman Jim Clyburn has been at the heart of some of the most pivotal political moments of 2020 .
Clyburn , the African American House majority whip , was a hugely influential figure during his home state ’ s Democratic primary , where former vice-president Joe Biden handily won and began a dramatic campaign turnaround after Clyburn endorsed him .
Since then he ’ s also been an influential voice in arguing for the type of running mate Biden should pick , pushing for a black woman to be on the ticket – which would be a historic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Clyburn , the highest ranking African American Democrat in House leadership , has been at the forefront over the ongoing national discussions on policing and the need for a broader overhaul of the criminal justice system .
Clyburn has also joined calls to take down Confederate monuments .
In a wide ranging interview with the Guardian , Clyburn explained why he thinks the current protests on race relations are different , his thinking on Biden ’ s pick for a running mate , and how large reforms need to be to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there has been a sea change in the last few years over how the Black Lives Matter movement is regarded by Americans overall .
“ I remember two , three years ago , there were people who would not allow the words ‘ black lives matter ’ to fall from their lips , ” Clyburn said .
“ Today , not only are they falling from their lips but they are going out , marching in support of the concept , writing op-ed pieces , expressing their support for the concept.
” Asked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ country spurred by the death of George Floyd , an African American man who died in police custody , was the root of that , Clyburn said “ I think that ’ s correct.
” “ You need this kind of energy that ’ s taking place in order to sustain any movement and so to see this energy is very , very welcoming , ” Clyburn added .
It ’ s unclear what the ultimate legislative result will be from the protests and that energy .
Congress continues to debate some kind @ @ @ @ @ @ @ any policing overhaul will have to be big rather than incremental and it has to go beyond just specific changes to policing .
Clyburn , though , has made a point of not advocating for merely defunding police departments , as some liberals have argued for .
“ What I want to see us do is have a restructuring – I ’ ve used that word before and I ’ ve been mocked for using it and I will continue to use because I don ’ t know how you tell me that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t know how you ’ re going to solve them without restructuring the system , ” Clyburn said , adding that the entire “ judicial system , it ’ s got to be restructured ” .
Clyburn recently also joined calls within his state to take down a statue of Ben Tillman , a South Carolina politician who defended lynching African Americans .
Those calls have been part of a wider push to remove statues of Confederate soldiers and leaders across the country .
Throughout the 2020 campaign Clyburn has emerged as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sought after endorsement ahead of the South Carolina primary helped propel Biden to victory there and triggered the rapid cascade of events that made the former vice-president the presumptive Democratic nominee .
Now he ’ s publicly argued that Biden could benefit from picking an African American running mate .
Biden is reportedly considering more than a handful of African American women for the role .
“ It would be a plus to have an African American woman , ” Clyburn said .
“ And I ’ ll reiterate I have never said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ must is to win this campaign .
That ’ s a must , not just for black people but for the country .
Because I really believe if Joe Biden does not win this campaign , this country ’ s democracy will crumble.
” Clyburn wouldn ’ t say whether there was any potential pick Biden should take more seriously .
But he did say that he specifically suggested a few potential candidates who are being considered – former Obama administration national security adviser Susan Rice and Atlanta ’ s mayor Keisha Lance @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ahead of a contentious Democratic primary in New York on Tuesday night in the race for House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Eliot Engel ’ s congressional seat .
Clyburn endorsed Engel , bucking progressives who had largely lined up behind liberal challenger Jamaal Bowman – who went on to win .
Clyburn ’ s support for Engel underscored an ongoing fissure within the Democratic party between younger liberal Democrats pushing new candidates and older , more established party leaders who are still standing by longtime allies .
If anything though , Clyburn ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ election in November .
He pointed out that right around this time in 2016 polls suggested that Hillary Clinton would beat Donald Trump decisively , much like polls are suggesting Biden will fare against Trump .
“ Right around this time Hillary was a foregone conclusion that she would win .
But she didn ’ t , ” Clyburn said .
“ Irrespective of what reasons were given , she didn ’ t .
Those reasons still hang out there today .
That is what concerns me – whether or not we have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fair and unfettered .
”

South Carolina congressman Jim Clyburn has been at the heart of some of the most pivotal political moments of 2020.
Clyburn, the African American House majority whip, was a hugely influential figure during his home state’s Democratic primary, where former vice-president Joe Biden handily won and began a dramatic campaign turnaround after Clyburn endorsed him.
Since then he’s also been an influential voice in arguing for the type of running mate Biden should pick, pushing for a black woman to be on the ticket – which would be a historic first.
Outside of the 2020 campaign, Clyburn, the highest ranking African American Democrat in House leadership, has been at the forefront over the ongoing national discussions on policing and the need for a broader overhaul of the criminal justice system. Clyburn has also joined calls to take down Confederate monuments.
In a wide ranging interview with the Guardian, Clyburn explained why he thinks the current protests on race relations are different, his thinking on Biden’s pick for a running mate, and how large reforms need to be to the policing and justice system.
Clyburn said there has been a sea change in the last few years over how the Black Lives Matter movement is regarded by Americans overall.
“I remember two, three years ago, there were people who would not allow the words ‘black lives matter’ to fall from their lips,” Clyburn said. “Today, not only are they falling from their lips but they are going out, marching in support of the concept, writing op-ed pieces, expressing their support for the concept.”
Asked if he thought the protests across the country spurred by the death of George Floyd, an African American man who died in police custody, was the root of that, Clyburn said “I think that’s correct.”
“You need this kind of energy that’s taking place in order to sustain any movement and so to see this energy is very, very welcoming,” Clyburn added.
It’s unclear what the ultimate legislative result will be from the protests and that energy.
Congress continues to debate some kind of policing reform bill. Clyburn thinks any policing overhaul will have to be big rather than incremental and it has to go beyond just specific changes to policing. Clyburn, though, has made a point of not advocating for merely defunding police departments, as some liberals have argued for.
“What I want to see us do is have a restructuring – I’ve used that word before and I’ve been mocked for using it and I will continue to use because I don’t know how you tell me that these are systemic problems and I don’t know how you’re going to solve them without restructuring the system,” Clyburn said, adding that the entire “judicial system, it’s got to be restructured”.
Clyburn recently also joined calls within his state to take down a statue of Ben Tillman, a South Carolina politician who defended lynching African Americans. Those calls have been part of a wider push to remove statues of Confederate soldiers and leaders across the country.
Throughout the 2020 campaign Clyburn has emerged as an undeniable power player.
His much sought after endorsement ahead of the South Carolina primary helped propel Biden to victory there and triggered the rapid cascade of events that made the former vice-president the presumptive Democratic nominee. Now he’s publicly argued that Biden could benefit from picking an African American running mate. Biden is reportedly considering more than a handful of African American women for the role.
“It would be a plus to have an African American woman,” Clyburn said. “And I’ll reiterate I have never said it is a must. The only must is to win this campaign. That’s a must, not just for black people but for the country. Because I really believe if Joe Biden does not win this campaign, this country’s democracy will crumble.”
Clyburn wouldn’t say whether there was any potential pick Biden should take more seriously. But he did say that he specifically suggested a few potential candidates who are being considered – former Obama administration national security adviser Susan Rice and Atlanta’s mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms among others.
“I suggested Susan. [Congresswoman] Karen Bass. [Congresswoman] Marcia Fudge, I’ve suggested a few,” Clyburn said.
The interview came ahead of a contentious Democratic primary in New York on Tuesday night in the race for House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Eliot Engel’s congressional seat. Clyburn endorsed Engel, bucking progressives who had largely lined up behind liberal challenger Jamaal Bowman – who went on to win. Clyburn’s support for Engel underscored an ongoing fissure within the Democratic party between younger liberal Democrats pushing new candidates and older, more established party leaders who are still standing by longtime allies.
If anything though, Clyburn’s bigger concerns center on the presidential election in November. He pointed out that right around this time in 2016 polls suggested that Hillary Clinton would beat Donald Trump decisively, much like polls are suggesting Biden will fare against Trump.
“Right around this time Hillary was a foregone conclusion that she would win. But she didn’t,” Clyburn said. “Irrespective of what reasons were given, she didn’t. Those reasons still hang out there today. That is what concerns me – whether or not we have in place a process that will be fair and unfettered.”


theguardian--2020-06-28--Bannon aims to make a comeback in circle of Trump influencers ahead of election

As an election approaches , Steve Bannon and his allies are trying to return the former chief White House strategist to media circles known to influence the president ’ s thinking .
An investment banker who became chairman of Breitbart News and led Donald Trump ’ s campaign in 2016 , Bannon has extensive links to global far-right nationalist movements .
He was fired as a top adviser to the president in the summer of 2017 , in the aftermath of white supremacist protests in Charlottesville , Virginia during which a counter-protester was killed .
Since then he has worked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ primaries , sometimes contrary to the Trump administration ’ s aims , and has tried to foster rightwing populist movements in Europe .
More recently , Bannon and Jason Miller , a former Trump communications adviser , worked on a podcast called Bannon ’ s War Room , a niche offering for the right wing of the party .
Both men have now returned to more mainstream Republican and conservative media circles .
Miller recently returned to the Trump campaign as a senior adviser , briefing Trump often and is reportedly in good @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s successes have been more modest .
But he recently appeared on Fox News , discussing the forthcoming election and lavishing praise on the boss who fired him .
“ When people see the difference between the order of Trump and the chaos of [ presumptive Democratic candidate Joe ] Biden , ” he said , “ I think it ’ s going to be a pretty clear choice and I think Biden ’ s going to have a very tough time making this case to people.
” Both Republicans close to Bannon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ president stressed to the Guardian that Bannon has not talked to Trump directly and is not in the mix to return to the White House or the campaign .
Bannon declined to talk on the record for this story .
But allies stressed that the president has started to speak positively of Bannon and likes Bannon ’ s podcast : a not insignificant development , given Trump ’ s well-reported tendency to be influenced by conservative media .
“ The president has spoken very highly about Steve to a number of people lately @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has spoken often to Trump .
The operative added that “ there ’ s no formal or informal role ” for Bannon on either the Trump campaign or in the White House but “ at the same time the president has spoken very highly of him and likes the show ” .
The conservative-leaning Washington Examiner cited former White House officials and Trump insiders when it reported that Bannon has been trying to get conservative commentators to start criticizing the president ’ s re-election campaign .
In an interview on the John Fredericks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ traveling to Arizona this week , and touring the border wall .
But Bannon also said Trump should approach re-election less like a candidate and more like a sitting president .
“ You act like president of the United States , you take action like the president of the United States , you govern like you are president of the United States , you are going to be re-elected , ” Bannon said .
Other senior Republican officials and advisers to the president described Bannon offering his thoughts about Trump ’ s campaign @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump ’ s orbit .
The president has expressed frustration with his current campaign manager , Brad Parscale , and the campaign has brought in officials with extensive experience .
Bannon , senior officials and advisers said , sees an opportunity to get back in the mix .
Running Trump ’ s 2016 campaign , Bannon engineered moments such as a press conference before a debate with Hillary Clinton in which Trump presented women who had accused Bill Clinton of sexual misconduct .
While most predicted defeat for Trump , Bannon was bullish @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the White House after less than a year , after clashing with then-chief of staff John Kelly .
After the publication of Michael Wolff ’ s tell-all book , Fire and Fury , for which Bannon was a chief source , Trump took to abusing him on Twitter as “ Sloppy Steve Bannon ” .
Miller has stopped co-hosting the podcast with Bannon , but the two men remain on good terms .

As an election approaches, Steve Bannon and his allies are trying to return the former chief White House strategist to media circles known to influence the president’s thinking.
An investment banker who became chairman of Breitbart News and led Donald Trump’s campaign in 2016, Bannon has extensive links to global far-right nationalist movements.
He was fired as a top adviser to the president in the summer of 2017, in the aftermath of white supremacist protests in Charlottesville, Virginia during which a counter-protester was killed.
Since then he has worked to boost insurgent conservative candidates in Republican primaries, sometimes contrary to the Trump administration’s aims, and has tried to foster rightwing populist movements in Europe.
More recently, Bannon and Jason Miller, a former Trump communications adviser, worked on a podcast called Bannon’s War Room, a niche offering for the right wing of the party.
Both men have now returned to more mainstream Republican and conservative media circles.
Miller recently returned to the Trump campaign as a senior adviser, briefing Trump often and is reportedly in good standing with the president.
Bannon’s successes have been more modest. But he recently appeared on Fox News, discussing the forthcoming election and lavishing praise on the boss who fired him.
“When people see the difference between the order of Trump and the chaos of [presumptive Democratic candidate Joe] Biden,” he said, “I think it’s going to be a pretty clear choice and I think Biden’s going to have a very tough time making this case to people.”
Both Republicans close to Bannon and those who have talked with the president stressed to the Guardian that Bannon has not talked to Trump directly and is not in the mix to return to the White House or the campaign.
Bannon declined to talk on the record for this story.
But allies stressed that the president has started to speak positively of Bannon and likes Bannon’s podcast: a not insignificant development, given Trump’s well-reported tendency to be influenced by conservative media.
“The president has spoken very highly about Steve to a number of people lately,” said one Republican operative who has spoken often to Trump.
The operative added that “there’s no formal or informal role” for Bannon on either the Trump campaign or in the White House but “at the same time the president has spoken very highly of him and likes the show”.
The conservative-leaning Washington Examiner cited former White House officials and Trump insiders when it reported that Bannon has been trying to get conservative commentators to start criticizing the president’s re-election campaign.
In an interview on the John Fredericks radio show, Bannon praised Trump for traveling to Arizona this week, and touring the border wall. But Bannon also said Trump should approach re-election less like a candidate and more like a sitting president.
“You act like president of the United States, you take action like the president of the United States, you govern like you are president of the United States, you are going to be re-elected,” Bannon said.
Other senior Republican officials and advisers to the president described Bannon offering his thoughts about Trump’s campaign as an attempt to reinsert himself in Trump’s orbit.
The president has expressed frustration with his current campaign manager, Brad Parscale, and the campaign has brought in officials with extensive experience. Bannon, senior officials and advisers said, sees an opportunity to get back in the mix.
Running Trump’s 2016 campaign, Bannon engineered moments such as a press conference before a debate with Hillary Clinton in which Trump presented women who had accused Bill Clinton of sexual misconduct. While most predicted defeat for Trump, Bannon was bullish throughout.
But he ended up leaving the White House after less than a year, after clashing with then-chief of staff John Kelly. After the publication of Michael Wolff’s tell-all book, Fire and Fury, for which Bannon was a chief source, Trump took to abusing him on Twitter as “Sloppy Steve Bannon”.
Miller has stopped co-hosting the podcast with Bannon, but the two men remain on good terms.


theguardian--2020-06-28--The Room Where It Happened by John Bolton review – a monument to his own grandiosity

Any hairdresser could have told them it wouldn ’ t work .
Trump initially refused to hire John Bolton because he disliked his moustache .
That walrus brush , which looks like a grizzled version of the cow-catching guard rails on an ancient locomotive , annoyed the elderly combed-over dandy .
Trump ’ s spun-sugar plumage starts behind one of his ears , circles round his scalp , hardens under a toxic rain of spray , then tapers into a jaunty duck tail above his collar : did he envy a man who brandished such stiff bristles on his upper @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pest Roger Ailes recommended Bolton as “ a bomb thrower ” , so Trump , avid for explosions , made him national security adviser .
They resolved to play good cop and bad cop , although the partnership turned out to be more like bad cop and worse cop .
After a mere 18 months it fell apart .
Bolton says he resigned , Trump claims to have fired him ; I ’ m content to contemplate what nuclear theorists would call their mutually assured destruction .
Now Bolton declares Trump unfit for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ despots in return for an electoral leg-up , smiling on Chinese concentration camps for Muslims and wanting American journalists executed .
Trump , incapable of answering the charges , has instead defamed Bolton as a “ wacko ” and a “ sick puppy ” .
In American parlance , the first means that he ’ s mad and should be locked up , the second that he ’ s disgusting and ought to be put down .
Politics is the continuation of warfare by other means ; it also prolongs into adulthood the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Yes , such superannuated adolescents hold the world ’ s fate in their bunched fists .
Bolton ’ s macho facial hair advertises his mettle as a cold warrior .
His book sneers at the peaceable protocols of “ international governance ” and disparages Europeans as weak-kneed ninnies .
Juggling phone calls at a G7 meeting , he bizarrely boasts “ I felt like the Light Brigade ” , and in an epigraph he echoes the Duke of Wellington ’ s rallying cry to his troops at Waterloo .
Yet when Bolton says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the cicatrices are merely metaphorical .
Although he enjoys sending others into battle , in 1969 he avoided service in Vietnam by joining the non-combatant national guard .
His excuse ?
He disdained participation in a losing war .
Trump , another draft dodger , at first appears to be thrillingly keen for conflict .
“ Holy fuck !
” he yelps when the vixenish Melania shafts one of Bolton ’ s aides .
“ Hit ’ em , finish ’ em , ” he grunts during a dispute with the Turks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he orders an envoy to China .
But his rampages are mostly rhetorical , no different , as Bolton says , from the way that Obama “ graced the world with his views , doing nothing to see them carried out ” , a comment that incidentally reveals what Trump and Bolton hate about Obama : they can ’ t forgive his grace under pressure .
While Bolton pleads for a “ kinetic response ” , Trump frustrates him by cancelling war games to placate North Korea and calling off a strike on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ predicted .
When Trump reconsiders his initial wheeze of invading or annexing Venezuela , Bolton diagnoses “ a case of the vapours ” , that affliction of sensitive 19th-century females .
Could the famed pussy-grabber be a wuss ?
Even Mike Pence , that stalwart Christian soldier , lapses into campy lingo when he reports on Trump ’ s jockeying with the Ukrainian president .
“ Just between us girls , ” pouts Pence as he whispers an update into Bolton ’ s ear .
Trepidation gets the better of Bolton just once @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump thought of Putin because he was “ afraid of what I might hear ” .
Despite the promise of the book ’ s title , Bolton was not in the room during Trump ’ s extended confab with Putin in Helsinki , from which Putin emerged as cockily as a strutting bantam while Trump stumbled out like a trodden hen with ruffled feathers .
Nor , in further blows to Bolton ’ s bravado , did the unspecific “ it ” invoked by the title always happen .
For the most part @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lists Bolton ’ s failures to incite what he calls “ existential ” showdowns with Nato and the EU or Syria and Iran .
He missed his best chance to change history when , reluctant to spoil his eventual book sales , he declined to speak up during Trump ’ s impeachment .
He did offer to let the Senate subpoena him , confident that the Republican majority would not want to hear from witnesses for the prosecution .
In an epilogue , he offers a variant of his unrepentant apology for sitting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ impeachment was a lost cause .
When it ’ s not tallying Trump ’ s offences , Bolton ’ s book is a monument to his own grandiosity .
One chapter title quotes Antony ’ s threatening prediction about “ the dogs of war ” in Shakespeare ’ s Julius Caesar , and the Caesarism of Trump and his authoritarian buddies in Turkey , Brazil , Russia and China is a recurrent theme .
Institutionally and even architecturally , Washington DC models itself on republican Rome , where right-minded senators reined in or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a glimpse of this latter-day Roman ethos when General John Kelly , enraged by a tiff with Trump , says : “ I ’ m going out to Arlington.
” At serious times , Bolton remarks , Kelly drove to the national cemetery to calm down by brooding at the grave of his son , a marine killed in Afghanistan .
Bolton defers to the same lofty standards .
To explain why he refused the first jobs Trump dangled before him , he quotes Joseph Addison ’ s neoclassical tragedy Cato – a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it traces the conscientious resistance of a stoic who defended the republic against Caesar ’ s tyranny .
“ When vice prevails and impious men bear sway , ” declares Cato in stately pentameters , “ the post of honour is a private station.
” But where Addison ’ s hero finally recognises that “ the world was made for Caesar ” and kills himself in despair , Bolton chose to collude with a vicious and impious man .
Now , rather than attitudinising on a pedestal in a post of honour , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the annals of infamy .
• The Room Where It Happened by John Bolton is published by Simon & Schuster ( £25 ) .
To order a copy go to guardianbookshop.com .
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Any hairdresser could have told them it wouldn’t work. Trump initially refused to hire John Bolton because he disliked his moustache. That walrus brush, which looks like a grizzled version of the cow-catching guard rails on an ancient locomotive, annoyed the elderly combed-over dandy. Trump’s spun-sugar plumage starts behind one of his ears, circles round his scalp, hardens under a toxic rain of spray, then tapers into a jaunty duck tail above his collar: did he envy a man who brandished such stiff bristles on his upper lip? But the Fox News sex pest Roger Ailes recommended Bolton as “a bomb thrower”, so Trump, avid for explosions, made him national security adviser.
They resolved to play good cop and bad cop, although the partnership turned out to be more like bad cop and worse cop. After a mere 18 months it fell apart. Bolton says he resigned, Trump claims to have fired him; I’m content to contemplate what nuclear theorists would call their mutually assured destruction. Now Bolton declares Trump unfit for office and accuses him of appeasing foreign despots in return for an electoral leg-up, smiling on Chinese concentration camps for Muslims and wanting American journalists executed. Trump, incapable of answering the charges, has instead defamed Bolton as a “wacko” and a “sick puppy”. In American parlance, the first means that he’s mad and should be locked up, the second that he’s disgusting and ought to be put down. Politics is the continuation of warfare by other means; it also prolongs into adulthood the name-calling of schoolboys in the playground. Yes, such superannuated adolescents hold the world’s fate in their bunched fists.
Bolton sneers at the peaceable protocols of international governance and disparages Europeans as weak-kneed ninnies
Bolton’s macho facial hair advertises his mettle as a cold warrior. His book sneers at the peaceable protocols of “international governance” and disparages Europeans as weak-kneed ninnies. Juggling phone calls at a G7 meeting, he bizarrely boasts “I felt like the Light Brigade”, and in an epigraph he echoes the Duke of Wellington’s rallying cry to his troops at Waterloo. Yet when Bolton says “my scar tissue had scars”, the cicatrices are merely metaphorical. Although he enjoys sending others into battle, in 1969 he avoided service in Vietnam by joining the non-combatant national guard. His excuse? He disdained participation in a losing war.
Trump, another draft dodger, at first appears to be thrillingly keen for conflict. “Holy fuck!” he yelps when the vixenish Melania shafts one of Bolton’s aides. “Hit ’em, finish ’em,” he grunts during a dispute with the Turks. “Kick their ass,” he orders an envoy to China. But his rampages are mostly rhetorical, no different, as Bolton says, from the way that Obama “graced the world with his views, doing nothing to see them carried out”, a comment that incidentally reveals what Trump and Bolton hate about Obama: they can’t forgive his grace under pressure.
A losing battle? Protesters in Washington DC object to John Bolton’s nomination as US ambassador to the United Nations in 2005. Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images
While Bolton pleads for a “kinetic response”, Trump frustrates him by cancelling war games to placate North Korea and calling off a strike on Iran because a paltry 150 casualties are predicted. When Trump reconsiders his initial wheeze of invading or annexing Venezuela, Bolton diagnoses “a case of the vapours”, that affliction of sensitive 19th-century females. Could the famed pussy-grabber be a wuss? Even Mike Pence, that stalwart Christian soldier, lapses into campy lingo when he reports on Trump’s jockeying with the Ukrainian president. “Just between us girls,” pouts Pence as he whispers an update into Bolton’s ear.
Trepidation gets the better of Bolton just once: he admits he never asked what Trump thought of Putin because he was “afraid of what I might hear”. Despite the promise of the book’s title, Bolton was not in the room during Trump’s extended confab with Putin in Helsinki, from which Putin emerged as cockily as a strutting bantam while Trump stumbled out like a trodden hen with ruffled feathers. Nor, in further blows to Bolton’s bravado, did the unspecific “it” invoked by the title always happen. For the most part, this memoir compiled from bureaucratic memos lists Bolton’s failures to incite what he calls “existential” showdowns with Nato and the EU or Syria and Iran. He missed his best chance to change history when, reluctant to spoil his eventual book sales, he declined to speak up during Trump’s impeachment. He did offer to let the Senate subpoena him, confident that the Republican majority would not want to hear from witnesses for the prosecution. In an epilogue, he offers a variant of his unrepentant apology for sitting out Vietnam: why bother, since impeachment was a lost cause.
When it’s not tallying Trump’s offences, Bolton’s book is a monument to his own grandiosity. One chapter title quotes Antony’s threatening prediction about “the dogs of war” in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, and the Caesarism of Trump and his authoritarian buddies in Turkey, Brazil, Russia and China is a recurrent theme. Institutionally and even architecturally, Washington DC models itself on republican Rome, where right-minded senators reined in or struck down aspiring emperors. We get a glimpse of this latter-day Roman ethos when General John Kelly, enraged by a tiff with Trump, says: “I’m going out to Arlington.” At serious times, Bolton remarks, Kelly drove to the national cemetery to calm down by brooding at the grave of his son, a marine killed in Afghanistan.
Bolton defers to the same lofty standards. To explain why he refused the first jobs Trump dangled before him, he quotes Joseph Addison’s neoclassical tragedy Cato – a play much admired by George Washington because it traces the conscientious resistance of a stoic who defended the republic against Caesar’s tyranny. “When vice prevails and impious men bear sway,” declares Cato in stately pentameters, “the post of honour is a private station.” But where Addison’s hero finally recognises that “the world was made for Caesar” and kills himself in despair, Bolton chose to collude with a vicious and impious man. Now, rather than attitudinising on a pedestal in a post of honour, he will forever be a footnote in the annals of infamy.


theguardian--2020-06-28--'A play for the base': why Republicans are set for Florida convention amid pandemic

Every four years , Democrats and Republicans stage their national conventions , huge primetime events at which presidential nominations are formally bestowed amid cascades of balloons , in front of cheering crowds .
On 20 August , a little more than two months before election day , Joe Biden will duly accept the Democratic nomination in Milwaukee , Wisconsin .
A week later , Donald Trump will be crowned by Republicans in Jacksonville , Florida .
Thanks to the coronavirus pandemic , almost everything else will not proceed as usual .
But the two parties will follow radically different paths @ @ @ @ @ @ @ death toll passed 124,000 and cases surged in many states , Democrats announced a slimmed-down convention , mostly online and with physical events staged under guidance from public health experts .
Biden ’ s speech , for example , has been moved to a smaller venue .
Republicans have also made big changes , but for a different reason .
Despite the pandemic racing through America , they are attempting not to sacrifice spectacle in the name of public safety .
The Republican convention was set for Charlotte , North Carolina .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would not allow what is in effect a huge campaign rally – crowds packed tight in a sports arena – in the shadow of Covid-19 .
As a result , party business will be conducted in Charlotte with public health restrictions but Jacksonville will now host made-for-TV events not subject to mandatory social distancing , mask-wearing or other measures .
In Wisconsin , Democrats are working with Tony Evers , a governor from their own party who has sought to prioritize the fight against the virus .
In Florida , the governor , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ supporter who has championed economic reopening .
Tara Setmayer , a Republican operative and Trump critic , told the Guardian : “ The simple version of why lots of people will be brought into Jacksonville in the middle of a pandemic is this Republican need to appear committed to reopening and not to mandate safety measures .
“ Everything that the Republican party does now is a play for the base .
There ’ s no other logical explanation because the Democrats have had enough sense to make the proper adjustments and go @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s own standards for social distancing and things like that .
“ There ’ s a lot involved logistically to control a national convention .
It costs tens of millions of dollars .
You bring in multiple police agencies to coordinate .
It ’ s a Herculean effort.
” “ So the Democrats understood it ’ s not worth risking the health and exposure of all these people and the logistical nightmare you would create .
Whereas Donald Trump and the Republican party seem not to give a damn about the health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ And that is incredibly self-centered and politically craven.
” But it may be politically necessary for Trump .
Heralding the decision to go to Jacksonville , the Republican National Committee chair , Ronna McDaniel , cited the economic benefit to the city but also pointed to the hard political realities that govern any choice of convention location .
Florida , McDaniel said , “ is crucial in the path for victory in 2020 ” .
Four months out from the election , the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia rates four @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : Arizona , North Carolina , Florida and Wisconsin .
Trump won them all in 2016 and in all likelihood will have to do so again .
Much can change but by the UVA count , excluding the toss-ups , Biden has 268 likely electoral college votes to 204 for Trump .
A candidate needs 270 to win .
“ Florida ’ s a must-win but so ’ s North Carolina , ” said Larry Sabato , director of the UVA Center for Politics .
“ Lose either , and Trump ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ choice of venue was governed by similar political concerns , but their outlook now looks much brighter .
“ Wisconsin looked like the pivot state , ” Sabato said .
“ There ’ s always one .
If it goes one way then Trump wins , if it goes the other way , then Biden wins .
So that ’ s why the Democrats put it in Wisconsin .
It was one of the great shocks of 2016 .
They figured they could get Michigan back without doing a convention there and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the same with Pennsylvania .
“ Wisconsin was the tough one – they thought.
” As it turns out , as June rolls into July polling averages put Biden ahead nationally and in most battleground states .
Realclearpolitics.com , for example , has him up 49 % to 41 % in Wisconsin and 50 % to 44 % in Florida .
North Carolina is closer , Trump trailing by one point .
But where it offers 15 electoral votes , Florida has 29 .
In Trump ’ s camp , one poll may @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Jacksonville residents by the University of North Florida found that “ 58 % strongly or somewhat opposed ” hosting the Republican convention and 71 % were “ very or somewhat concerned … about Covid-19 transmission ” .
Such concern can hit turnout .
Last weekend , Trump returned to the campaign trail in Tulsa , Oklahoma , a city and state badly hit by Covid-19 .
The rally attracted a small crowd and staffers tested positive .
The Florida poll also found 61 % of respondents were concerned about protests and social unrest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and structural racism , Trump ’ s speech in Jacksonville on 27 August will fall on the 60th anniversary of Ax Handle Saturday , the day in 1960 when a white mob attacked civil rights activists in the Florida city .
Setmayer and other observers point to the insensitivity of such timing .
However , Dr Michael Binder of the University of North Florida noted that conventions are by their nature “ polarizing events ” and said that “ under the backdrop of a global pandemic that appears to have come more fervently @ @ @ @ @ @ @ event being hosted locally seems much more concerning ” .
The two would-be presidents are not the only people who will be watching the polls into August .
Sabato said polling in North Carolina showed support for Cooper in his confrontation with Trump .
Setmayer pointed to a fall in support for Jacksonville ’ s mayor , Lenny Curry , since the Republicans announced they were coming to town .
DeSantis is widely said to be eyeing a presidential run in four years ’ time .
Last month , Politico reported on how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nomination in New Orleans in 1988 , saw how Republicans lionized him as , as Sabato put it , “ a hero of history ” , and told friends : “ This is what I want.
” In Jacksonville , he will demand such a spectacle .
McDaniel , the party chair , has promised “ a packed arena ” and all the trimmings : balloons showering from the ceiling , bands , chants of the candidate ’ s name and the familiar mantra : “ Four more years !
” As public @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gatherings , particularly indoors , McDaniel has also promised “ to make sure the convention-goers are safe ” .
But case numbers continue to surge in Florida .
On Friday , DeSantis both announced a record daily caseload and finally ordered a pause in reopening .
It is hard to see the situation being much better by August .
“ I just really don ’ t see the upside in the long term for Donald Trump , ” Setmayer said .
“ He ’ ll personally get his adulation fix , but that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
”

Every four years, Democrats and Republicans stage their national conventions, huge primetime events at which presidential nominations are formally bestowed amid cascades of balloons, in front of cheering crowds.
On 20 August, a little more than two months before election day, Joe Biden will duly accept the Democratic nomination in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A week later, Donald Trump will be crowned by Republicans in Jacksonville, Florida.
Thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, almost everything else will not proceed as usual. But the two parties will follow radically different paths.
This week, as the US death toll passed 124,000 and cases surged in many states, Democrats announced a slimmed-down convention, mostly online and with physical events staged under guidance from public health experts. Biden’s speech, for example, has been moved to a smaller venue.
Republicans have also made big changes, but for a different reason. Despite the pandemic racing through America, they are attempting not to sacrifice spectacle in the name of public safety.
The Republican convention was set for Charlotte, North Carolina. But Roy Cooper, the Democratic governor, would not allow what is in effect a huge campaign rally – crowds packed tight in a sports arena – in the shadow of Covid-19.
As a result, party business will be conducted in Charlotte with public health restrictions but Jacksonville will now host made-for-TV events not subject to mandatory social distancing, mask-wearing or other measures.
In Wisconsin, Democrats are working with Tony Evers, a governor from their own party who has sought to prioritize the fight against the virus. In Florida, the governor, Ron DeSantis, is a prominent Trump supporter who has championed economic reopening.
Tara Setmayer, a Republican operative and Trump critic, told the Guardian: “The simple version of why lots of people will be brought into Jacksonville in the middle of a pandemic is this Republican need to appear committed to reopening and not to mandate safety measures.
Donald Trump and the Republican party seem not to give a damn about the health and safety of the people involved Tara Setmayer
“Everything that the Republican party does now is a play for the base. There’s no other logical explanation because the Democrats have had enough sense to make the proper adjustments and go virtual, to adhere to the government’s own standards for social distancing and things like that.
“There’s a lot involved logistically to control a national convention. It costs tens of millions of dollars. You bring in multiple police agencies to coordinate. It’s a Herculean effort.”
“So the Democrats understood it’s not worth risking the health and exposure of all these people and the logistical nightmare you would create. Whereas Donald Trump and the Republican party seem not to give a damn about the health and safety of the people involved. And that is incredibly self-centered and politically craven.”
But it may be politically necessary for Trump. Heralding the decision to go to Jacksonville, the Republican National Committee chair, Ronna McDaniel, cited the economic benefit to the city but also pointed to the hard political realities that govern any choice of convention location.
Florida, McDaniel said, “is crucial in the path for victory in 2020”.
‘Florida’s a must-win’
Four months out from the election, the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia rates four states as toss-ups between Biden and Trump: Arizona, North Carolina, Florida and Wisconsin.
Trump won them all in 2016 and in all likelihood will have to do so again. Much can change but by the UVA count, excluding the toss-ups, Biden has 268 likely electoral college votes to 204 for Trump. A candidate needs 270 to win.
“Florida’s a must-win but so’s North Carolina,” said Larry Sabato, director of the UVA Center for Politics. “Lose either, and Trump’s probably lost the election.”
Donald and Melania Trump celebrate at the Republican national convention with Mike and Karen Pence in Cleveland, Ohio, on 21 July 2016. Photograph: Mike Segar/Reuters
The Democrats’ choice of venue was governed by similar political concerns, but their outlook now looks much brighter.
“Wisconsin looked like the pivot state,” Sabato said. “There’s always one. If it goes one way then Trump wins, if it goes the other way, then Biden wins. So that’s why the Democrats put it in Wisconsin. It was one of the great shocks of 2016. They figured they could get Michigan back without doing a convention there and I think they were right, and the same with Pennsylvania.
“Wisconsin was the tough one – they thought.”
As it turns out, as June rolls into July polling averages put Biden ahead nationally and in most battleground states. Realclearpolitics.com, for example, has him up 49% to 41% in Wisconsin and 50% to 44% in Florida. North Carolina is closer, Trump trailing by one point. But where it offers 15 electoral votes, Florida has 29.
In Trump’s camp, one poll may cause special concern. A poll of Jacksonville residents by the University of North Florida found that “58% strongly or somewhat opposed” hosting the Republican convention and 71% were “very or somewhat concerned … about Covid-19 transmission”.
Such concern can hit turnout. Last weekend, Trump returned to the campaign trail in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a city and state badly hit by Covid-19. The rally attracted a small crowd and staffers tested positive.
The Florida poll also found 61% of respondents were concerned about protests and social unrest. Amid national protests over police brutality and structural racism, Trump’s speech in Jacksonville on 27 August will fall on the 60th anniversary of Ax Handle Saturday, the day in 1960 when a white mob attacked civil rights activists in the Florida city.
Setmayer and other observers point to the insensitivity of such timing. However, Dr Michael Binder of the University of North Florida noted that conventions are by their nature “polarizing events” and said that “under the backdrop of a global pandemic that appears to have come more fervently to Florida, the opposition to this event being hosted locally seems much more concerning”.
The two would-be presidents are not the only people who will be watching the polls into August. Sabato said polling in North Carolina showed support for Cooper in his confrontation with Trump. Setmayer pointed to a fall in support for Jacksonville’s mayor, Lenny Curry, since the Republicans announced they were coming to town. DeSantis is widely said to be eyeing a presidential run in four years’ time.
‘A packed arena’
Last month, Politico reported on how Trump attended George HW Bush’s nomination in New Orleans in 1988, saw how Republicans lionized him as, as Sabato put it, “a hero of history”, and told friends: “This is what I want.”
In Jacksonville, he will demand such a spectacle. McDaniel, the party chair, has promised “a packed arena” and all the trimmings: balloons showering from the ceiling, bands, chants of the candidate’s name and the familiar mantra: “Four more years!”
As public health officials continue to warn against large gatherings, particularly indoors, McDaniel has also promised “to make sure the convention-goers are safe”.
But case numbers continue to surge in Florida. On Friday, DeSantis both announced a record daily caseload and finally ordered a pause in reopening. It is hard to see the situation being much better by August.
“I just really don’t see the upside in the long term for Donald Trump,” Setmayer said. “He’ll personally get his adulation fix, but that’s all it’ll be.”


theguardian--2020-06-28--'Like leaning into a left hook': coronavirus calamity unfolds across divided US

A disaster is unfolding in Montgomery , Alabama , where Martin Luther King preached and where Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on the bus .
Hospitals are running short of drugs to treat Covid-19 , intensive care units are close to capacity , and ventilators are running short .
Between 85 % and 90 % of the very sick and dying are African American .
Amid this gathering storm , the city council met to decide whether to require people to wear masks , a basic protection the US Centers for Disease Control and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Doctors lined up to plead their case .
“ This is beyond an epidemic in this area , ” said the pulmonologist Bill Saliski .
“ Our units are full of critically ill covid patients .
We have to slow this down.
” His colleague , Nina Nelson-Garrett , described watching undertakers carrying out corpses , 30 minutes apart .
“ Something as simple as a mask can save someone ’ s life , ” she said .
Dr Kim McGlothan recounted how she was frequently stopped by white people asking , “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it really as bad as they are making out ?
” McGlothan told the council : “ People don ’ t believe the hype .
Until you mandate masks , we won ’ t be able to stop this – we just won ’ t. ” Then a black resident stood up .
Six of his relatives had died from Covid-19 .
His brother was on a ventilator .
“ This is not about masks , ” he said .
“ The question on the table is , ‘ Do black lives matter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ family to Covid .
How would it feel if it was your family ?
” The council debated for two hours .
White council members asked if young children could get carbon monoxide poisoning from masks – no , the doctors firmly told them – and spoke portentously about individual rights .
“ At the end of the day , ” said councilman Brantley Lyons , “ if a pandemic comes through , we do not throw our constitutional rights out the window.
” When the vote was called , it divided on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for masks , in order to prevent more families losing six loved ones .
White members voted against masks , to preserve the fundamental right not to attach a cloth to your face .
In a 4-4 tie , the ordinance failed .
As he left the chamber , Dr Saliski uttered just one word : “ Unbelievable.
” Unbelievable accurately describes America today .
The country is on the brink of a huge surge of Covid-19 , as the virus tears through the heartlands while the president praises himself for having done @ @ @ @ @ @ @ predicts the scourge will “ fade away ” .
Ask Alabama whether the virus is fading away .
Or Arizona , Florida , South Carolina or Texas .
The disease is venting its fury on these states , which all reopened their economies – with Donald Trump ’ s avid blessing – before the contagion was contained .
“ Opening while cases are increasing is like leaning into a left hook , ” said Tom Frieden , a former CDC director .
“ You are basically asking to get hit – and that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Alabama is enduring a pummeling .
It has recorded 32,000 cases and its curve is on a steep upward path .
The Republican governor of Texas , Greg Abbott , who ushered in one of the earliest and most aggressive reopenings , insisted a few days ago that his state “ remains wide-open for business ” .
Yet he has been unable to ignore reality : that the virus has spread its lethal tentacles to every corner of the state overwhelming hospitals to the point that Houston medical centers are running out of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Texas ’ bars are closing .
One town , near Houston , has even brought in a curfew .
The Lone Star state recorded 6,584 cases on Wednesday alone – a heart-sinking figure that makes its curve look almost vertical .
Florida ’ s malaise would be wryly amusing were so many lives not at stake .
On 20 May the conservative magazine the National Review ran the gloating headline : “ Where Does Ron DeSantis Go to Get His Apology ?
” The article scolded liberal critics of the Republican governor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he famously allowed beaches to remain open in spring break and has permitted shops and restaurants to get back to business – for having got it wrong : there was no spike in Florida .
On 20 May , Florida ’ s daily infection load stood at 527 new cases .
Five weeks later , it reported a record 8,942 on Friday and broke the record again on Saturday with 9,585 .
Though states such as Florida and Texas are bearing the brunt of the beating , this is not a catastrophe that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just a few places .
Across the nation , at terrifying speed , a similar picture is revealing itself .
Every important data point , including positivity rates and hospitalizations , is surging across most states .
A map produced by a team of epidemiologists and health experts , Covid Act Now , shows only four states , all in the north-east , including New York , which used to be at the center of the pandemic but has wrestled it under control , as being on track to contain the disease .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ active or imminent outbreaks .
It is troubling enough that the US now has 2.4m confirmed cases – double the number of the next highest country in the world , Brazil , and almost certainly a huge underestimate .
The death toll has passed 125,000 , with another 20,000 at least expected this month .
The death rate is still trending downwards – one bit of positive news in this sorry picture .
But deaths lag behind confirmed cases by a month , and that spells trouble ahead .
One crumb of comfort @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the daily rate of new infections held steady at around 20,000 cases a day .
Then , two weeks ago , the monster began to stir .
The tally of new cases ticked upwards , and on Thursday it reached a stomach-churning 40,000 – the worst day on record since the pandemic began .
“ It ’ s getting worse , not better , ” said Frieden , who now heads the global health initiative Resolve to Save Lives .
“ The contrast with other countries is striking .
South Korea had 30 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The US now has 30,000 cases a day and there are people shrugging and saying ‘ It ’ s no big deal ’ .
” Trump is shrugger-in-chief .
When the president lured thousands of non-mask wearing supporters to a viral incubation party – he called it a rally – in Tulsa , Oklahoma , last Saturday , he told them that in his view testing for coronavirus was a “ double-edged sword… When you do testing you are going to find more cases .
So I told my people , slow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ efforts to pass the comment off as a joke , it encapsulates the Trump administration ’ s approach towards this devastating crisis .
Early on , Trump failed to marshal the full weight of the most powerful government on Earth against the virus .
He lost six critical weeks .
Even today , the 500,000 tests being carried out each day falls woefully short of the scale needed .
Contact tracing – another crucial tool – is patchy at best , with signs that a growing number of Americans are unwilling to cooperate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ aghast as Trump has done exactly what he said he would : put a dampener on data-driven efforts that could , over the course of the pandemic , potentially save hundreds of thousands of lives .
“ Everybody agrees we need a lot more testing , ” said Ashish Jha , director of the Harvard Global Health Institute .
“ But when the conversation turns to , ‘ Why can ’ t we ramp up the testing ?
’ there ’ s always the sense that the White House is not going to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ necessary .
There ’ s real pushback against scientific leaders calling for action.
” Evidence for such a pushback isn ’ t hard to find .
There ’ s this week ’ s announcement that the Trump administration will soon end federal funding for 13 testing sites – seven in ravaged Texas .
Then there ’ s the ghostlike absence of the CDC , one of the world ’ s leading public health agencies , which has fallen mute at the moment it is most needed .
Frieden has become so frustrated by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ led for almost eight years , until Trump entered the White House , he has taken to publicising CDC research himself , in a desperate attempt to fill the void .
When the Guardian put it to him that this was an extraordinary state of affairs , Frieden replied : “ It feels a bit like North Korea , doesn ’ t it ?
” The most worrying aspect of the tone being set by Trump is that it is starting to shift the mindset of ordinary Americans .
Everywhere you look there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ line with the president – shrugging and saying it ’ s no big deal .
That trend is very visible in Montgomery .
In the end , the town ’ s African American mayor , Steven Reed , overruled the city council ’ s white members and introduced mandatory mask-wearing by executive fiat .
But it will be an uphill battle persuading white townsfolk to abide by the ordinance .
Brad Harper , a reporter with the Montgomery Advertiser , says he is struck whenever he goes into a Target or Walmart that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ black shoppers have their faces covered .
On social media , people rant about masks as “ muzzles ” and “ badges of submission ” .
“ People get really angry about it , resisting even their doctors asking them to wear it , ” Harper said .
“ They don ’ t see a protective device , as something that can save the people around you , they see it as an instrument of control.
” All across the country , similar acts of personal rebellion are playing out .
Residents of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ anger against a mandatory mask order , calling it the “ devil ’ s law ” and an affront to “ God ’ s breathing system ” .
Further up the Florida coast , in Jacksonville Beach , 16 friends decided to have a night out at an Irish pub – the entire group came down with the virus , as well as seven bar workers .
A surprise birthday party in Texas led to 18 members of one family being infected .
Crowds of unmasked people have been gathering in Las Vegas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cases have soared .
In Arizona , the Republican sheriff of Pinal county vowed not to enforce the lockdown on grounds of individual liberty , and promptly contracted the disease himself .
Not to mention Cruisin ’ Chubbys Gentleman ’ s Club , a strip club in Wisconsin that had its very own outbreak .
‘ If you divide people , you allow divide and conquer ’ Everywhere you look there are indications America ’ s social contract – the idea that if we stand united we can defeat this terrible affliction – @ @ @ @ @ @ @ divide people , you allow divide and conquer , ” Frieden said .
“ This is us against them , humans against microbes .
The more we are divided , the more microbes will conquer.
” Wändi Bruine de Bruin , provost professor of public policy , psychology and behavioral science at the University of Southern California , has been tracking the changing public response since March .
Through a rolling survey of 7,000 adults , she has found that most Americans – about 71 % – still say they avoid public spaces @ @ @ @ @ @ @ falling , fast , down from 92 % in April .
She puts the slide down to unclear messaging .
“ Messages and policies are no longer consistent .
Some businesses are allowed to open , others not , and it ’ s not clear why .
That leads to confusion , and anger .
Some people start to think it ’ s not fair , others start to assume it ’ s not that important.
” Jha said it was vital to acknowledge that most Americans , including many Republicans , have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But he frets that a mindset is taking hold that the virus is somebody else ’ s problem .
“ I worry that it will take large numbers of people getting very sick , the hospitals filling up , for people to realise this is a pandemic , not a disease outbreak in New York or New Orleans .
I hope it doesn ’ t come to that .
I worry that it will.
” The Guardian asked whether he was concerned about possible public resistance to renewed lockdown orders , should @ @ @ @ @ @ @ measures in the face of a Covid-19 explosion .
“ I do fear that , ” he said .
“ For months there has been a concerted effort by a small minority to argue that this is overblown or a hoax .
It will be difficult for Republican leaders to get people to change their views on this.
” Jha checked himself , then added : “ It ’ s a tiny minority .
Unfortunately , it includes the president of the United States.
” The good news is that scientists are very @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Frieden calls it the three Ws – wear a mask , wash your hands , watch your distance – combined with aggressive testing , contact tracing and isolation of the sick .
If such measures can be introduced concertedly and quickly , both at federal and state level , public health experts are confident that all is not lost .
The contagion could be contained and the economy slowly and relatively safely rebooted .
But time is running out for America .
“ This is a long war and we are losing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ because we are not fighting them , ” Frieden said .
“ We are going to be paying for the mistakes we make today for months , or even years , to come .
”

A disaster is unfolding in Montgomery, Alabama, where Martin Luther King preached and where Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on the bus. Hospitals are running short of drugs to treat Covid-19, intensive care units are close to capacity, and ventilators are running short.
Between 85% and 90% of the very sick and dying are African American.
Amid this gathering storm, the city council met to decide whether to require people to wear masks, a basic protection the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) strongly recommends. Doctors lined up to plead their case.
“This is beyond an epidemic in this area,” said the pulmonologist Bill Saliski. “Our units are full of critically ill covid patients. We have to slow this down.”
His colleague, Nina Nelson-Garrett, described watching undertakers carrying out corpses, 30 minutes apart.
“Something as simple as a mask can save someone’s life,” she said.
Dr Kim McGlothan recounted how she was frequently stopped by white people asking, “Is the media sensationalizing this, is it really as bad as they are making out?”
McGlothan told the council: “People don’t believe the hype. Until you mandate masks, we won’t be able to stop this – we just won’t.”
Then a black resident stood up. Six of his relatives had died from Covid-19. His brother was on a ventilator. “This is not about masks,” he said. “The question on the table is, ‘Do black lives matter?’ I lost six of my family to Covid. How would it feel if it was your family?”
If a pandemic comes through, we do not throw our constitutional rights out the window Brantley Lyons, councilman
The council debated for two hours. White council members asked if young children could get carbon monoxide poisoning from masks – no, the doctors firmly told them – and spoke portentously about individual rights.
“At the end of the day,” said councilman Brantley Lyons, “if a pandemic comes through, we do not throw our constitutional rights out the window.”
When the vote was called, it divided on largely racial lines. Black members voted for masks, in order to prevent more families losing six loved ones. White members voted against masks, to preserve the fundamental right not to attach a cloth to your face.
In a 4-4 tie, the ordinance failed. As he left the chamber, Dr Saliski uttered just one word: “Unbelievable.”
Reopen Alabama protesters demonstrate in Montgomery, Alabama, in April. Photograph: Jake Crandall/AP
Unbelievable accurately describes America today. The country is on the brink of a huge surge of Covid-19, as the virus tears through the heartlands while the president praises himself for having done “a great job” and blithely predicts the scourge will “fade away”.
Ask Alabama whether the virus is fading away. Or Arizona, Florida, South Carolina or Texas. The disease is venting its fury on these states, which all reopened their economies – with Donald Trump’s avid blessing – before the contagion was contained.
“Opening while cases are increasing is like leaning into a left hook,” said Tom Frieden, a former CDC director. “You are basically asking to get hit – and that’s what these states did.”
Alabama is enduring a pummeling. It has recorded 32,000 cases and its curve is on a steep upward path.
The Republican governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, who ushered in one of the earliest and most aggressive reopenings, insisted a few days ago that his state “remains wide-open for business”. Yet he has been unable to ignore reality: that the virus has spread its lethal tentacles to every corner of the state overwhelming hospitals to the point that Houston medical centers are running out of ICU beds. Now, once again, Texas’ bars are closing. One town, near Houston, has even brought in a curfew.
The Lone Star state recorded 6,584 cases on Wednesday alone – a heart-sinking figure that makes its curve look almost vertical.
Florida’s malaise would be wryly amusing were so many lives not at stake. On 20 May the conservative magazine the National Review ran the gloating headline: “Where Does Ron DeSantis Go to Get His Apology?” The article scolded liberal critics of the Republican governor’s lax approach to coronavirus – he famously allowed beaches to remain open in spring break and has permitted shops and restaurants to get back to business – for having got it wrong: there was no spike in Florida.
On 20 May, Florida’s daily infection load stood at 527 new cases. Five weeks later, it reported a record 8,942 on Friday and broke the record again on Saturday with 9,585.
05:28 From miracle cures to slowing testing: how Trump has defied science on coronavirus – video explainer
‘It’s getting worse, not better’
Though states such as Florida and Texas are bearing the brunt of the beating, this is not a catastrophe that can be dismissed as the problem of just a few places. Across the nation, at terrifying speed, a similar picture is revealing itself.
Every important data point, including positivity rates and hospitalizations, is surging across most states. A map produced by a team of epidemiologists and health experts, Covid Act Now, shows only four states, all in the north-east, including New York, which used to be at the center of the pandemic but has wrestled it under control, as being on track to contain the disease. Twenty-one states are at risk or facing active or imminent outbreaks.
It is troubling enough that the US now has 2.4m confirmed cases – double the number of the next highest country in the world, Brazil, and almost certainly a huge underestimate. The death toll has passed 125,000, with another 20,000 at least expected this month.
The death rate is still trending downwards – one bit of positive news in this sorry picture. But deaths lag behind confirmed cases by a month, and that spells trouble ahead.
One crumb of comfort had been that for almost three months the daily rate of new infections held steady at around 20,000 cases a day. Then, two weeks ago, the monster began to stir.
The tally of new cases ticked upwards, and on Thursday it reached a stomach-churning 40,000 – the worst day on record since the pandemic began.
“It’s getting worse, not better,” said Frieden, who now heads the global health initiative Resolve to Save Lives. “The contrast with other countries is striking. South Korea had 30 cases a day and they flipped out. The US now has 30,000 cases a day and there are people shrugging and saying ‘It’s no big deal’.”
Trump told a Tulsa rally: ‘When you do testing you are going to find more cases. So I told my people, slow the testing down.’ Photograph: Sue Ogrocki/AP
Trump is shrugger-in-chief. When the president lured thousands of non-mask wearing supporters to a viral incubation party – he called it a rally – in Tulsa, Oklahoma, last Saturday, he told them that in his view testing for coronavirus was a “double-edged sword… When you do testing you are going to find more cases. So I told my people, slow the testing down.”
Despite White House efforts to pass the comment off as a joke, it encapsulates the Trump administration’s approach towards this devastating crisis. Early on, Trump failed to marshal the full weight of the most powerful government on Earth against the virus. He lost six critical weeks.
When the conversation turns to, ‘Why can’t we ramp up testing?’ there’s a sense the White House is not going to be happy Ashish Jha, Harvard Global Health Institute
Even today, the 500,000 tests being carried out each day falls woefully short of the scale needed. Contact tracing – another crucial tool – is patchy at best, with signs that a growing number of Americans are unwilling to cooperate.
Leading public health experts have watched aghast as Trump has done exactly what he said he would: put a dampener on data-driven efforts that could, over the course of the pandemic, potentially save hundreds of thousands of lives.
“Everybody agrees we need a lot more testing,” said Ashish Jha, director of the Harvard Global Health Institute. “But when the conversation turns to, ‘Why can’t we ramp up the testing?’ there’s always the sense that the White House is not going to be happy to do what’s necessary. There’s real pushback against scientific leaders calling for action.”
Evidence for such a pushback isn’t hard to find. There’s this week’s announcement that the Trump administration will soon end federal funding for 13 testing sites – seven in ravaged Texas.
Then there’s the ghostlike absence of the CDC, one of the world’s leading public health agencies, which has fallen mute at the moment it is most needed. Frieden has become so frustrated by the booming silence of the institution he led for almost eight years, until Trump entered the White House, he has taken to publicising CDC research himself, in a desperate attempt to fill the void.
When the Guardian put it to him that this was an extraordinary state of affairs, Frieden replied: “It feels a bit like North Korea, doesn’t it?”
The most worrying aspect of the tone being set by Trump is that it is starting to shift the mindset of ordinary Americans. Everywhere you look there are anecdotal signs of people falling in line with the president – shrugging and saying it’s no big deal.
That trend is very visible in Montgomery. In the end, the town’s African American mayor, Steven Reed, overruled the city council’s white members and introduced mandatory mask-wearing by executive fiat.
But it will be an uphill battle persuading white townsfolk to abide by the ordinance. Brad Harper, a reporter with the Montgomery Advertiser, says he is struck whenever he goes into a Target or Walmart that almost all white shoppers go unmasked while black shoppers have their faces covered.
On social media, people rant about masks as “muzzles” and “badges of submission”. “People get really angry about it, resisting even their doctors asking them to wear it,” Harper said. “They don’t see a protective device, as something that can save the people around you, they see it as an instrument of control.”
People walk on the Hollywood Beach Boardwalk as Florida reports another surge in coronavirus cases, on 26 June. Photograph: Larry Marano/REX/Shutterstock
All across the country, similar acts of personal rebellion are playing out. Residents of Palm Beach, Florida, erupted in anger against a mandatory mask order, calling it the “devil’s law” and an affront to “God’s breathing system”.
Further up the Florida coast, in Jacksonville Beach, 16 friends decided to have a night out at an Irish pub – the entire group came down with the virus, as well as seven bar workers. A surprise birthday party in Texas led to 18 members of one family being infected.
Crowds of unmasked people have been gathering in Las Vegas’s reopened casinos, and Covid-19 cases have soared. In Arizona, the Republican sheriff of Pinal county vowed not to enforce the lockdown on grounds of individual liberty, and promptly contracted the disease himself. Not to mention Cruisin’ Chubbys Gentleman’s Club, a strip club in Wisconsin that had its very own outbreak.
‘If you divide people, you allow divide and conquer’
Everywhere you look there are indications America’s social contract – the idea that if we stand united we can defeat this terrible affliction – is breaking down.
“If you divide people, you allow divide and conquer,” Frieden said. “This is us against them, humans against microbes. The more we are divided, the more microbes will conquer.”
Wändi Bruine de Bruin, provost professor of public policy, psychology and behavioral science at the University of Southern California, has been tracking the changing public response since March. Through a rolling survey of 7,000 adults, she has found that most Americans – about 71% – still say they avoid public spaces and crowds. But the proportion is falling, fast, down from 92% in April.
She puts the slide down to unclear messaging. “Messages and policies are no longer consistent. Some businesses are allowed to open, others not, and it’s not clear why. That leads to confusion, and anger. Some people start to think it’s not fair, others start to assume it’s not that important.”
Jha said it was vital to acknowledge that most Americans, including many Republicans, have so far been compliant with stay-at-home orders. But he frets that a mindset is taking hold that the virus is somebody else’s problem.
“I worry that it will take large numbers of people getting very sick, the hospitals filling up, for people to realise this is a pandemic, not a disease outbreak in New York or New Orleans. I hope it doesn’t come to that. I worry that it will.”
This is a long war and we are losing a lot of battles right now, because we are not fighting them Tom Frieden
The Guardian asked whether he was concerned about possible public resistance to renewed lockdown orders, should some states be forced back into extreme measures in the face of a Covid-19 explosion.
“I do fear that,” he said. “For months there has been a concerted effort by a small minority to argue that this is overblown or a hoax. It will be difficult for Republican leaders to get people to change their views on this.”
Jha checked himself, then added: “It’s a tiny minority. Unfortunately, it includes the president of the United States.”
People visit a self-swabbing coronavirus COVID-19 testing site at the Lilburn First Baptist church in Lilburn, Georgia. Photograph: Erik S Lesser/EPA
The good news is that scientists are very clear about what needs to be done. Frieden calls it the three Ws – wear a mask, wash your hands, watch your distance – combined with aggressive testing, contact tracing and isolation of the sick.
If such measures can be introduced concertedly and quickly, both at federal and state level, public health experts are confident that all is not lost. The contagion could be contained and the economy slowly and relatively safely rebooted.
But time is running out for America.
“This is a long war and we are losing a lot of battles right now, because we are not fighting them,” Frieden said. “We are going to be paying for the mistakes we make today for months, or even years, to come.”


theguardian--2020-06-28--The Observer view on the need to know the extent of the Russian threat to Britain  | Observer editor

The Observer view on the need to know the extent of the Russian threat to Britain  | Observer editorial

The formal “ finding ” by US intelligence officials that the same covert Russian military action unit responsible for the Salisbury nerve agent poisonings has paid Islamist militants to target and kill British troops in Afghanistan is deeply shocking .
Boris Johnson ’ s government now faces a renewed diplomatic confrontation with Vladimir Putin ’ s regime in Moscow from which it must not shy away .
According to an official US briefing shared with Britain last week , agents attached to Unit 29155 , an arm of Russia ’ s GRU military intelligence agency , offered bounties to Taliban-linked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ British troops .
The US intelligence agencies ’ finding was first reported by the New York Times .
The British and US governments concluded last year that Unit 29155 operatives were responsible for the March 2018 attack in Salisbury on Sergei Skripal , a former GRU officer who had defected to Britain , and his daughter .
Although Putin denied any involvement , the evidence was conclusive .
The incident prompted western sanctions against Russia .
Britain and the US are not the only countries to have suffered from apparently systematic attempts by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ assassins and spooks to destabilise the west .
Russian methods include fake news social media campaigns , cyber-attacks , sabotage , subversion , deniable military operations and covert killing .
One such outrage occurred in Berlin last year , when an anti-Moscow Chechen separatist was murdered in what German prosecutors termed a state-sanctioned assassination .
Unit 29155 has also been linked to an attempted coup in Montenegro , the poisoning of a Bulgarian arms manufacturer and subversion in Moldova .
Of key concern are well-documented clandestine GRU efforts to meddle in foreign elections @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Robert Mueller , who investigated claims that Republicans colluded with Moscow to defeat Hillary Clinton , found that Donald Trump ’ s campaign was aware of Russian interference and hoped to benefit from it electorally .
That alleged connection may help explain why Trump ’ s White House , which was first told of the Russian bounty-hunting operation in Afghanistan in March , has so far taken no action .
By keeping silent , Trump may hope to salvage his proposed “ peace deal ” with the Taliban .
He may also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ previously opposed sanctions imposed on Russia over US election meddling .
According to reports of in-camera testimony to MPs in 2018 , Christoper Steele , a former MI6 spy , claimed the Russians had a “ likely hold ” on Trump and may also have covertly funded the pro-Brexit referendum campaign in 2016 .
Steele ’ s testimony formed part of an inquiry by parliament ’ s intelligence and security committee ( ISC ) into Russian interference in Britain .
It is an absolute scandal that the ISC ’ s report , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ yet been published .
Johnson refused to release it before last December ’ s election , for largely unexplained reasons , and it is still not in the public domain .
Opposition MPs now suspect a cover-up .
Are they right ?
Suspicions that Steele is correct in suggesting that Johnson , as foreign secretary , and Theresa May , the then prime minister , did not act on his ISC evidence because they feared upsetting Trump must be fully examined and , if baseless , laid to rest .
Likewise , claims @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Brexit referendum , and that Russian oligarchs have funded the Conservative party , are extremely damaging to British democracy and must be exposed to unfettered public scrutiny and debate .
Otherwise , people will ask , what has Johnson got to hide ?
Publication of the ISC report is rendered more urgent by the revelations concerning the bounty-hunting of British servicemen and women .
There are about 1,100 British military personnel in Afghanistan .
If this country ’ s soldiers , politics , democratic votes and way of life are under @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the public has the right to know – and the right to expect a vigorous response from Johnson as a matter of the utmost urgency .

The formal “finding” by US intelligence officials that the same covert Russian military action unit responsible for the Salisbury nerve agent poisonings has paid Islamist militants to target and kill British troops in Afghanistan is deeply shocking. Boris Johnson’s government now faces a renewed diplomatic confrontation with Vladimir Putin’s regime in Moscow from which it must not shy away.
According to an official US briefing shared with Britain last week, agents attached to Unit 29155, an arm of Russia’s GRU military intelligence agency, offered bounties to Taliban-linked extremists in return for killing American and British troops. The US intelligence agencies’ finding was first reported by the New York Times.
The British and US governments concluded last year that Unit 29155 operatives were responsible for the March 2018 attack in Salisbury on Sergei Skripal, a former GRU officer who had defected to Britain, and his daughter. Although Putin denied any involvement, the evidence was conclusive. The incident prompted western sanctions against Russia.
Britain and the US are not the only countries to have suffered from apparently systematic attempts by Russia’s president and his shadowy assassins and spooks to destabilise the west. Russian methods include fake news social media campaigns, cyber-attacks, sabotage, subversion, deniable military operations and covert killing.
One such outrage occurred in Berlin last year, when an anti-Moscow Chechen separatist was murdered in what German prosecutors termed a state-sanctioned assassination. Unit 29155 has also been linked to an attempted coup in Montenegro, the poisoning of a Bulgarian arms manufacturer and subversion in Moldova.
Of key concern are well-documented clandestine GRU efforts to meddle in foreign elections, notably in the US in 2016. Robert Mueller, who investigated claims that Republicans colluded with Moscow to defeat Hillary Clinton, found that Donald Trump’s campaign was aware of Russian interference and hoped to benefit from it electorally.
That alleged connection may help explain why Trump’s White House, which was first told of the Russian bounty-hunting operation in Afghanistan in March, has so far taken no action. By keeping silent, Trump may hope to salvage his proposed “peace deal” with the Taliban. He may also be wary of upsetting Putin. Trump previously opposed sanctions imposed on Russia over US election meddling.
According to reports of in-camera testimony to MPs in 2018, Christoper Steele, a former MI6 spy, claimed the Russians had a “likely hold” on Trump and may also have covertly funded the pro-Brexit referendum campaign in 2016. Steele’s testimony formed part of an inquiry by parliament’s intelligence and security committee (ISC) into Russian interference in Britain.
It is an absolute scandal that the ISC’s report, which was completed in October, has not yet been published. Johnson refused to release it before last December’s election, for largely unexplained reasons, and it is still not in the public domain. Opposition MPs now suspect a cover-up. Are they right?
Suspicions that Steele is correct in suggesting that Johnson, as foreign secretary, and Theresa May, the then prime minister, did not act on his ISC evidence because they feared upsetting Trump must be fully examined and, if baseless, laid to rest.
Likewise, claims that Moscow tried to influence the outcome of the Brexit referendum, and that Russian oligarchs have funded the Conservative party, are extremely damaging to British democracy and must be exposed to unfettered public scrutiny and debate. Otherwise, people will ask, what has Johnson got to hide?
Publication of the ISC report is rendered more urgent by the revelations concerning the bounty-hunting of British servicemen and women. There are about 1,100 British military personnel in Afghanistan. If this country’s soldiers, politics, democratic votes and way of life are under sustained attack from Putin’s Russia, the public has the right to know – and the right to expect a vigorous response from Johnson as a matter of the utmost urgency.