| A useful map from February of Russian troop movements around Ukraine can be seen at the link. |
From our country’s point of view, the dynamics in play at this moment are delicate to an extreme. In the background of the Trump-Putin meet-up, amid an eerie silence in the DOJ and FBI, an epic, sweeping prosecution of the RussiaGate hoaxers creeps forward. RussiaGate, of course, was born in the false charge (by America’s highest officials, derived from nonsense cooked up by Hillary Clinton) that Donald Trump was a Russian agent. It was preposterous and continually disproven, but the many-footed creatures of America’s deep state, which controlled so many levers of power, dragged it out for years. Altogether, that endeavor amounted to a campaign of sedition and arguably treason.
The delicacy comes in as President Trump must now avoid at all costs any appearance of giving-in to Mr. Putin, of appearing to be any sort of a vassal — “Putin’s puppet,” as charged in RussiaGate. The raw truth is that Russia has likely already “won” the war in Ukraine, in the sense that it has finally gained control of the battlespace and worn out its opponent. It is fait accompli. What remains is the disposition of Ukraine’s future which, in another raw truth, is mostly Russia’s to determine.
Yet another raw truth is that this would probably be the best outcome for all concerned: a neutralized, disarmed Ukraine returned to its prior condition as a mostly agricultural sovereign backwater of Europe within Russia’s sphere-of-influence, resuming its longstanding status as not being a problem for anyone.
Still, yet another raw truth is that the USA would benefit hugely from normalized relations with Russia, no more sanctions, fair trade, a rebalance of the drift toward China, lessening the chance of nuclear war — and this would even benefit the knuckleheads of Europe whose economies are imploding due to a lack of affordable energy (and also because of, let’s face it, the EU’s terrifically stupid “green” policies).
| Courtesy of Skidmark: |
[FOXNEWS] Washington elites — of both parties — are clutching their pearls at the prospect of the Trump-Putin meeting in Alaska. "He's Putin's stooge!" scream Trump Derangement Syndrome Democrats
...every time you hear the phrase white people,
white supremacy,
whiteanything but paint, you're listening to a Democrat. Ask him/her/it to reimagine something for you; they do that a lot, though not well. They can hear a dog whistle a mile or two away. They invented the spoils system and Tammany Hall, and inspired the addition of the word
(Thomas) Nastyto the English language. They want to stop continental drift and repeal the law of unintended side effects...
. "He'll betray Ukraine to get a deal!" scream the forever war Republican NeoCons. "He'll abandon America First and get us embroiled in Europe's problem!" scream the isolationists in the Republican Party.
None of them understand what makes Donald Trump
...The tack in the backside of the Democratic Party...
tick. They think he's just like them — another standard issue politician who cares more about perception than reality, who values process over progress. He may have an end goal, but is usually unwilling to make compromises to achieve it.
Donald Trump approaches problems from the other direction. He has an end goal, even if he's not yet sure how to get there. He's willing to improvise, to compromise, to completely change his approach, even if it's unorthodox.
I've been in the Situation Room with four presidents, going back to President Richard Nixon. Trump is different. He focuses on getting a project completed as quickly as possible, no matter how he does it. It makes sense given his background. As a real estate developer, he didn't make money until a building was finished. All the expenses were up front — buy the land, service the debt and pay for workers, materials and machinery.
When Trump began a real estate development, he didn't know what difficulties he'd encounter along the way — bad weather, political roadblocks, labor disputes, supply chain disruptions. When he ran into problems, he improvised. His overriding goal was to finish the building as quickly as possible. Time is money. That's why President Trump is moving on all these issues at warp speed. That is why he always has a Plan A, Plan B and Plan C. That's why his critics call him unpredictable and mercurial and howl with outrage if he changes plans.
Most politicians are understandably focused on the next election. They must appear to have all the answers, for fear their opponents will tear them apart. When was the last time a politician admitted his plan didn't work? They give speeches, have negotiations and don't take risks for fear of failure or alienating important electorates. A politician can make process seem like progress.
K.T. McFarland was President Trump’s Deputy National Security Advisor. She is a board member of the American Conservative Union and author of the best-selling book, Revolution: Trump, Washington and "We the People."