~ Personal Commentary
American citizens have a
lot of work to do to maintain the Republic under a GOP majority in Congress. Having said that, we can
not forget that the overriding crisis in our country is the 21st Century Russian cyber attack on the United States of America to install Trump.
It is my experience that the GOP has always used language to push its #BigLies, on The People but now, as
they lie and create across the board uniform, replicable legislation,
suppress the vote and, most recently, warmly welcome the attack on our sovereignty to install GOP in the Oval Office, the escalating effort to discredit and to render American institutions useless is a clear concern –
And not just because there is little to no truth coming out of the Oval Office but because it also all sounds so very Russian!
And not just because there is little to no truth coming out of the Oval Office but because it also all sounds so very Russian!
I've known about GOP
#BigLies telling for a very long time but the
Russian cyber attack on the United States and the GOP complicity is new.
Beyond that, I still remember the day I
realized the depth of GOP propagandizing...
It was March 17, 2016 while
listening to Heather Conley give her statement before the Senate
Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism, Chaired by Sen.
Graham and titled: “The Modus Operandi and Toolbox of Russia and
Other Autocracies for Undermining Democracies Throughout the World.”
As she spoke I kept thinking – oh my #@&%* word – she could be talking about Trump!
What follows is a
highlighted version of Conley's opening remarks, with links provided
to the transcript, the hearing and The Kremlin Playbook.
I encourage viewing the hearing in full because we need to know and it is a good grounding in the threat we face. We also need to understand that it
has never been more critical to be able to distinguish between fact
and propaganda and to be able to demand fact from a media that has
been charged, via a First Amendment privilege, to inform the
citizenry so that informed voting may take place.
Also – keep in mind when
you get to the final paragraph which begins with: I therefore urge
the subcommittee to...” – Trump and GOP Kremlin Cohorts are in
charge...
Thank you!
Focused Read in 2-3 minutes
"The Modus Operandi
and Toolbox of Russia and Other Autocracies for Undermining
Democracies Throughout the World”
A Testimony by: Heather C. Conley
before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism
on March 15, 2017
Mr. Chairman, Ranking
Member, and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for this
opportunity to testify today on a subject of great importance: our
ability to understand how Russia’s strategy of influence works in
our democracies and to develop an effective strategy for its defeat.
I would like to commend the members of this subcommittee for their
bipartisan leadership and dedication to this issue. It is essential
that we not only recognize the wide range of instruments Russia uses
to exert influence and coercion on democratic countries (particularly
in Europe as the continent faces crucial elections this year – one
of which is taking place today in the Netherlands) but that we
educate our citizens to recognize and defeat this influence...
As described in Russia’s
doctrine of New Generation Warfare, Russia’s primary goal of
strategic influence is not one of using brute force but of
“break[ing] the internal coherence of the enemy system.” Russian
influence works through varying economic and political channels and
adapts to specific national situations, including biased news
outlets, intelligence networks, Russian-financed non-governmental
organizations, business linkages and friendly politicians. But while
each of these tactical elements must be understood in their own
right, we must not lose sight of their cumulative effect and
overarching strategic objective: the weakening of U.S. global
leadership and its dominance of the international system, the
weakening and ultimate collapse of NATO and the EU, and finally the
breakdown of the internal coherence, credibility, and moral authority
of Western democracies. Once European cohesion and coherence breaks
down and, with it, U.S. leadership, a “post-Western world” will
be achieved and a new international security architecture can be
negotiated.
However, it is important
to underscore that Russia does not engineer the entire framework in
which it conducts its strategy; rather, it takes advantage of
pre-existing institutional, political, and governance weaknesses and
exploits them, typically through manipulation and corruption. Indeed,
consecutive crises in Europe have laid bare existing deficiencies in
its institutional structures and societies that the Kremlin has
identified.
Over the past two years,
CSIS, in partnership with the Bulgarian think-tank the Center for the
Study of Democracy, studied how Russian economic influence impacted
five European countries from 2004 to 2014 when four of these
countries joined NATO and the EU, by examining changes to their
institutions, civil society, governance, and trans-Atlantic policy
orientation...culminating in the publication of a report, the Kremlin
Playbook, outlining such influence and impact...
We describe Russian
tactics as an “unvirtuous cycle” of influence which takes hold
and spreads in democratic societies through two main channels:
political and economic influence...
The other channel, Russian
economic influence, uses the Kremlin’s network of businessmen,
former intelligence officers and local oligarchs to manipulate and
dominate strategic sectors of a country’s economy (principally
energy, financial and media sectors). To achieve this, Russia can
rely on foreign direct investment (FDI), local power brokers with
whom it establishes business relations, and Soviet-era financial
networks...An example of how the economic and political influence can
work together can be seen in an example in Bulgaria where a member of
parliament holds significant business interests which span several
economic sectors, including a major media group which was built and
sustained with loans from the now-defunct Bulgarian Corporate
Commercial Bank, a financial entity partly owned by Russia’s VTB
Capital. This parliamentarian has advocated for pro-Russian policies
from his parliament seat... In 2013, the Bulgarian government
nominated the parliamentarian to head Bulgarian’s national security
agency. The unvirtuous circle was completed.
Both the political and
the economic influence channels rely on corruption as the principal
conduit for Russian influence. As the Bulgarian example suggests,
there is a corrosive comingling of public and private interests
through which the power to award and reward (money, power, resources)
ensures the continuation of this unvirtuous cycle...Culpability and
the prospect of further enrichment act as incentives to continue
working with Russian ‘influencers’, as well as to bring new
actors within the cycle...
What has allowed Russia’s
strategy to be successful is Western susceptibility to and at times
complicity with Russian exploitation...
The total effect of this
cycle is state capture, i.e. influence over critical state
institutions and the economy, as well as the protection of Russian
interests at varying levels of power. The goal is to use these local
affiliates to influence and direct decision-making and policies,
leading to the enrichment of the inner circle and the slow
deterioration of liberal democratic institutions through malign
influence...
How do we defeat this
strategy of influence?
Although we can describe Russian tactics, at
the end of the day, the first line of defense is strengthened Western
democratic institutions and societies.
First, we must transparently
track and trace illicit Russian-lined financial flows. We recommend
the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
(FinCEN) establish a specific, high-level task force solely focused
on tracing and prosecuting illicit Russian linked financial flows if
and when they interact with the U.S. financial system.
Second, U.S.
assistance (through State Department and USAID programs) to Central
and Eastern Europe, as well as the Western Balkans, must return to
this region following a prolonged absence and be refocused to better
combat Russian influence and prioritize strengthened governance.
Stronger governance and anti-corruption practices, an independent
judiciary, and an independent media are our first line of protection
against Russian malign influence.
Finally, it is absolutely essential
that we implement these programs in collaboration with our European
and EU partners who are on the front lines. We must engage with the
EU specifically on greater anticorruption and rule-of-law efforts.
Better European oversight of its own institutions is equally
essential. We must prioritize enhanced financial intelligence
cooperation and law enforcement efforts. There must be greater
urgency placed on combatting Russian influence as this influence is
being deployed more boldly and recklessly to greater affect.
In April 2016, the
Netherlands held a referendum in which Dutch voters rejected a trade
agreement between the European Union and Ukraine.
Prior to the referendum,
so-called ‘Ukrainian voices’ groups which campaigned against the
referendum were in fact Russian and some were from breakaway regions
of Ukraine.
False stories of Ukrainian
soldiers crucifying a Russian-speaking boy were circulated widely in
the media.
The Dutch government was
slow to recognize the importance of this referendum and there was
little questioning of the public campaign surrounding the referendum.
Low voter turnout combined with an intense effort to discredit
Ukraine and the agreement demonstrated that little effort was
required for this symbolic victory. Perhaps the most audacious act
occurred on October 16, 2016, when an alleged coup was barely
thwarted in Montenegro that would have prevented the election – on
the day of the election – of a pro-NATO government and possibly
assassinated Prime Minister Djukanovic.
The plot was orchestrated
by Serbian nationals with alleged ties to Russian secret services.
This is why there should be no hesitation or delay for the Senate to
ratify an amended NATO treaty to welcome Montenegro membership into
NATO. Perceptions of American hesitation are being effectively used
as part of a malign influence campaign. The stakes are becoming
incredibly high.
I therefore urge the
subcommittee to
develop specific legislation, in cooperation with
other appropriate committees, to build up our defenses against
Russian malign political and economic influence by strengthening
financial transparency requirements and beneficial ownership as well
as enhancing transparency requirements of entities which receive
Russian financing.
This must be a major joint
line of effort for the U.S. and European Union.
Ironically, the legal
attaches in U.S. embassies overseas have perhaps a more important
role to play today in defending the United States than do our defense
attaches.
Our national security, and the security of America’s most
important allies, rests on our ability to resist Russia’s strategy
of influence.
Thus far, we have unfortunately
failed.”
You can read the testimony in full here
⬆ You can watch the 117-minute hearing with other expert witnesses giving testimony here
( If you have a problem with the above link, you can find the hearing here )
Focused Thought in 10 seconds
Focused Actions in 30 seconds
You can share my Tweet here
Focused Point of Interest
"The Kremlin Playbook
Understanding Russian Influence in Central and Eastern Europe
There was a deeply held assumption that, when the countries of Central and Eastern Europe joined NATO and the European Union in 2004, these countries would continue their positive democratic and economic transformation. Yet more than a decade later, the region has experienced a steady decline in democratic standards and governance practices at the same time that Russia’s economic engagement with the region expanded significantly. Regional political movements and figures have increasingly sought to align themselves with the Kremlin and with illiberalism. Central European governments have adopted ambiguous—if not outright pro-Russian—policy stances that have raised questions about their transatlantic orientation and produced tensions within Western institutions. Are these developments coincidental, or has the Kremlin sought deliberately to erode the region's democratic institutions through its influence to “break the internal coherence of the enemy system”?
The CSIS Europe Program, in partnership with the Bulgarian Center for the Study of Democracy, recently concluded a 16-month study to understand the nature of Russian influence in five case countries: Hungary, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Latvia, and Serbia. This research determined that Russia has cultivated an opaque web of economic and political patronage across the region that the Kremlin uses to influence and direct decision making. This web resembles a network-flow model—or “unvirtuous circle”—which the Kremlin can use to influence (if not control) critical state institutions, bodies, and economies, as well as shape national policies and decisions that serve its interests while actively discrediting the Western liberal democratic system. ... "
You can find the 90-page report here
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.
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→ Direct sources for Democrats:
* ( Personal favored and most informative follows are shared here with the understanding that readers will always apply their own critical thinking to any information provided anywhere by anyone. #StrongerTogether does not share sources of information lightly but -- no one is perfect! -- so always #DistrustAndVerify I am using a star rating that is strictly based on my situational experience with the work of the media personality specifically in relation to issues of interest to me. )
The Democratic Party Website
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Website
The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee Website
Also
C-SPAN (a good place for speeches & hearings direct source (s))
→ Some of my favorite, most informative
follows on Twitter include:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ US Intelligence | Author | Navy Senior Chief | NBC/MSNBC
⭐⭐⭐ Federal Government Operations | Vanity Fair | Newsweek | MSNBC Contributor | Author
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Voting Rights/Voter Suppression | Author | Mother Jones
→ Some of the most credible media -- at the moment:
📰📰📰 Mother Jones
📰📰📰 The Washington Post
📰📰📰 The New York Times
💻💻💻 News And Guts on Facebook
→ Some of the most credible Talking Heads -- at the moment -- and their Twitter handles:
📺📺📺 Rachel Maddow on MSNBC
📺📺📺 The Beat With Ari on MSNBC
Thank you for Networking for Democrats today!
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(Linked) "...is our 2016 platform...a declaration of how we plan to move America forward. Democrats believe that cooperation is better than conflict, unity is better than division, empowerment is better than resentment, and bridges are better than walls.
(Remember 2018...)
*
Curated by Gail Mountain, with occasional personal commentary, Network For #StrongerTogether ! is not affiliated with The Democratic Party in any capacity. This is an independent blog and the hope is you will, at a glance, learn more about the Party and you will, with a click or two, also take action on its behalf as it is provided!
( You can also find me on Twitter at https://twitter.com/GKMTNtwits )
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You can find Vote411 here
Thank you for focusing!
g., aka Focused Democrat
...Committed to Staying Focused
✊ Resisting "Fake News"
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