Who would have ever thought that one of America’s two major political parties would decide in 2022 to partner with Vladimir Putin and Russia in attacking America, Europe, and NATO? If you think that is an exaggeration, you haven’t been paying attention to the media outlets from which most Republicans receive their news and information. Nor have you been paying attention to the Republicans featured on Russian state TV.

You know it is bad when video from American media outlets, like Fox News, is played repeatedly on Russian state television to prop up Putin’s war on Ukraine. But, sadly, that is our reality.

Putin, like his friend, former President Donald Trump, likes to engage in conspiracy theories, disinformation, and lies. He based his entire invasion of Ukraine on the false idea that he was saving the Ukrainian people from Nazis, which is interesting since Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, is Jewish. It is all false, of course, and the world can see that far from “saving” the Ukrainian people, Putin is literally destroying their homes, schools, and hospitals. The great cities of Ukraine are being pulverized and the men, women, and children living in them are being slaughtered.

Putin then moved to his next falsehood, which was that Ukraine was developing chemical weapons that are a threat to Russia. This is also false, but thanks to Republican media outlets in America throwing their support to each and every Putin excuse for war crimes against the Ukrainian people, the argument is accepted by large numbers of Russians and right-wing groups around the world. This latest lie has been repeated by right-wing American media outlets, including Fox News, and then replayed on Russian state television.

Georgia Congresswoman, Marjorie Taylor Greene took to the floor of the House and warned us about bioweapons laboratories in Ukraine, repeating Putin’s talking points. She even introduced a bill last week “to stop taxpayer funding of bioweapons” in Ukraine. Greene called it “evil and wrong.”

I guess helping Putin with his misinformation campaign against the US and Ukraine as he slaughters thousands of Ukrainian men, women, and children is also “evil and wrong.” Yet, interestingly, Greene has yet to take to the floor of Congress and condemn Putin and Russia.

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The labs in question, by the way, are used to study COVID-19 variants popping up in Ukraine and to develop effective vaccines to match the new variants. They also help to develop effective testing kits. The money for these labs comes from various international groups like the World Health Organization, as well as the United States. These labs to monitor and study COVID-19 variants have opened up around the world in response to the pandemic.

Putin expanded on his conspiracy theory by linking these laboratories to Hunter Biden and George Soros. Sure enough, Tucker Carlson of Fox News picked up Putin’s cue and repeated the rumor about the laboratories, Biden, and Soros. As stated by a spokesperson from Ukraine’s presidential office, Fox News gives Russian officials “international recognition of fictitious claims” and as stated by Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times, “the American right was happy to supply it.”

As outlined by Goldberg, “Putin, presumably, knows this as well, which helps explain why he’s appealing to Anglophone culture warriors.” For example, writes Goldberg, “Putin gave a speech in which he complained about cancel culture and compared Russia’s international isolation to denunciations of the ‘Harry Potter’ author J.K. Rowling for her views on gender.” Goldberg states that Putin’s reference was “a signal to the Western right that his struggle is theirs.”

In the Senate, a bill to suspend normal trade relations with Russia is being blocked by Sen. Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican. It has already passed the House, controlled by Democrats. Paul stated that the bill was too broad and could be abused by the US government. Funny how Paul is more concerned about the possible US abuse of Russia than about the abuse Russia is inflicting on the people of Ukraine.

Former President Trump is also a willing partner in Putin’s misinformation campaign. Last week, during an interview with Real America’s Voice, Trump called on Putin to dig up dirt on President Joe Biden and his family. I’m sure Putin will find time to do that in between his duties as a war criminal. Russian TV returned the favor by calling on the American people to change “the regime in the US and to again help our partner Trump to become President.”

Partner, indeed. Right out of the horse’s mouth.

Tom Zirpoli is a professor and program coordinator of the Human Services Management graduate program at McDaniel College. He writes from Westminster. His column appears Wednesdays. Email at [email protected].

Who would have ever thought that one of America’s two major political parties would decide in 2022 to partner with Vladimir Putin and Russia in attacking America, Europe, and NATO? If you think that is an exaggeration, you haven’t been paying attention to the media outlets from which most Republicans receive their news and information. Nor have you been paying attention to the Republicans featured on Russian state TV.

You know it is bad when video from American media outlets, like Fox News, is played repeatedly on Russian state television to prop up Putin’s war on Ukraine. But, sadly, that is our reality.

Putin, like his friend, former President Donald Trump, likes to engage in conspiracy theories, disinformation, and lies. He based his entire invasion of Ukraine on the false idea that he was saving the Ukrainian people from Nazis, which is interesting since Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, is Jewish. It is all false, of course, and the world can see that far from “saving” the Ukrainian people, Putin is literally destroying their homes, schools, and hospitals. The great cities of Ukraine are being pulverized and the men, women, and children living in them are being slaughtered.

Putin then moved to his next falsehood, which was that Ukraine was developing chemical weapons that are a threat to Russia. This is also false, but thanks to Republican media outlets in America throwing their support to each and every Putin excuse for war crimes against the Ukrainian people, the argument is accepted by large numbers of Russians and right-wing groups around the world. This latest lie has been repeated by right-wing American media outlets, including Fox News, and then replayed on Russian state television.

Georgia Congresswoman, Marjorie Taylor Greene took to the floor of the House and warned us about bioweapons laboratories in Ukraine, repeating Putin’s talking points. She even introduced a bill last week “to stop taxpayer funding of bioweapons” in Ukraine. Greene called it “evil and wrong.”

I guess helping Putin with his misinformation campaign against the US and Ukraine as he slaughters thousands of Ukrainian men, women, and children is also “evil and wrong.” Yet, interestingly, Greene has yet to take to the floor of Congress and condemn Putin and Russia.

Carroll County Daily Headlines

Daily

Get the day’s top news and sports headlines.

The labs in question, by the way, are used to study COVID-19 variants popping up in Ukraine and to develop effective vaccines to match the new variants. They also help to develop effective testing kits. The money for these labs comes from various international groups like the World Health Organization, as well as the United States. These labs to monitor and study COVID-19 variants have opened up around the world in response to the pandemic.

Putin expanded on his conspiracy theory by linking these laboratories to Hunter Biden and George Soros. Sure enough, Tucker Carlson of Fox News picked up Putin’s cue and repeated the rumor about the laboratories, Biden, and Soros. As stated by a spokesperson from Ukraine’s presidential office, Fox News gives Russian officials “international recognition of fictitious claims” and as stated by Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times, “the American right was happy to supply it.”

As outlined by Goldberg, “Putin, presumably, knows this as well, which helps explain why he’s appealing to Anglophone culture warriors.” For example, writes Goldberg, “Putin gave a speech in which he complained about cancel culture and compared Russia’s international isolation to denunciations of the ‘Harry Potter’ author J.K. Rowling for her views on gender.” Goldberg states that Putin’s reference was “a signal to the Western right that his struggle is theirs.”

In the Senate, a bill to suspend normal trade relations with Russia is being blocked by Sen. Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican. It has already passed the House, controlled by Democrats. Paul stated that the bill was too broad and could be abused by the US government. Funny how Paul is more concerned about the possible US abuse of Russia than about the abuse Russia is inflicting on the people of Ukraine.

Former President Trump is also a willing partner in Putin’s misinformation campaign. Last week, during an interview with Real America’s Voice, Trump called on Putin to dig up dirt on President Joe Biden and his family. I’m sure Putin will find time to do that in between his duties as a war criminal. Russian TV returned the favor by calling on the American people to change “the regime in the US and to again help our partner Trump to become President.”

Partner, indeed. Right out of the horse’s mouth.

Tom Zirpoli is a professor and program coordinator of the Human Services Management graduate program at McDaniel College. He writes from Westminster. His column appears Wednesdays. Email at [email protected].