The United States(!) of A
I think the report was suggesting how to do the training better, not suggesting that it shouldn’t be done. It’s a good article. I think it’s also really important for people to understand the scale of what is being attempted - those cultural, organizational issues would have been hard to address if it was being done in peacetime, let alone ‘in contact’
Russia is formidable. But they’re not unbeatable. They have massive military, but I’m not sure that that size is easily translated into effective combat potential at this point. Maybe that’s the takeaway.
I haven’t had a chance to listen to the Petraeus article yet. Going to try and find a wave for a grovel on an absolutely magnificent day. But I’ll look at it and get back to you.
Petraeus messages : Russia "Not well trained, not well equipped, not well led" "Brittle" "enormous losses sustained" "sheer loss of life not sustainable"
Ukraine "are well trained, well equipped".
No mention of Ukraine's truly enormous losses of life and equipment that is continuing at a rapid pace. Possibly 14 of 60 or so Leopard tanks destroyed and huge numbers of fighting vehicles in recent days. Petraeus states that virtually all attacks on ammunition depots are being foiled by their defenses despite many massive explosions proving otherwise.
No mention of the massive challenges such as you said: "the scale of what is being attempted - those cultural, organizational issues would have been hard to address if it was being done in peacetime, let alone ‘in contact’ " No view that the Russia army is "formidable" as you put it. and should be treated seriously.
My point is that with what appears to be overly ;positive thinking and an addiction to spin pervading the US and NATO military with regard to their proxy's capabilities, and the opposition, the US/NATO leaders are poorly placed to make the right decisions.
I have heard that success in the US military's is now a political game and those who brown nose and schmooze in Washington the best get promoted to the high levels. Competence is much less important.
One hopes that behind the scenes some level heads still exist but as we all know it is very hard in any organisation to be the realist in a world of spin and positivity.
The outcomes will unfold pretty soon and answer the questions as to reality.
I wouldn’t disagree with Petraeus’ broad characterization of the two systems. Russia expended vast amounts of its trained force in the initial invasion and subsequent offensives. Russian mobiks are given almost no training. Often get Cold War era weapons, that simply haven’t been maintained. Russia’s military is formidable due to size. It’s conventional forces are not what people thought they were. It’s still a nuclear power. But there are limits to what nuclear coercion can achieve.
It’s maybe not a case of “the emperor has no clothes” perhaps more that he has the wrong clothes for the party that he’s invited himself to.
Where are you getting your info from regarding Ukrainian losses? I mean, they’ve been predicted to collapse ‘any moment now’ by Ritter et al for about a year now. Even the Russian media is starting to question that.
There’s a level of hard-nosed making that the Ukrainians have had to make regarding weathering the Russian offensives over winter. I think they used a lot of Territorial Defence Forces to hold ground and deny the Russians the political wins they wanted in Bakhmut (and other places). Inflicted casualties on the Russians at a favorable rate (but some/most analysts are suggesting that it wasn’t at their “break-even” of 7:1 - which was why the decision to hold bahhkmut was criticized pretty heavily internally to Ukraine.) They traded ground for time. But from what I can tell, they didn’t commit any ‘fresh’ troops to those fights. Still, a horrible choice to make. Russia cared less about their causalities. They always do, but much of the heavy fighting in Bahkmut was conducted by Wagner, with ex-convicts in the first echelons to locate and establish a foothold in Ukrainian tactical positions. Not human wave, but not far off.
With your comment about brown nosing and military advice to political leaders - what you’re describing is common to all organizations, surely? The military is consciously subordinate to the state in western liberal democracies. So, above a certain rank they’re political appointees. I think that holds true in most places. I’d rather that than the military calling the shots.
If you want to question political decision making and military advice, what are your thoughts on Putin’s decision-making apparatus.? More or less robust and contestable than Western countries? What do you think about his generals and advisors? More or less objective than the US?
Because if there is one side that has consistently over-estimated it’s own capabilities, and not accurately assessed it’s ambition against those capabilities it is Russia.
Whether that is military power, economic tools, demographic advantage or diplomatic clout, it’s been consistently underwhelming.
Russia went in undercooked in scale and logistics hoping for an easy capitulation and so Petraeus may have been closer to the mark in the early phases. But since then, they have become much more strategic and have mobilised at a much larger scale and appear to be holding their main forces well back in strong fortified defenses protected by heavily mined zones open to artillery fire and air and drone strikes. Very tough to attack.
Despite hardware losses, they appear much more formidable in conventional war now than they appeared a year ago. They still have vulnerabilities such as Crimea and to other left field surprise tactics that might come into play.
I don't want to get bogged down in a debate on relative strengths of both sides and the to and fro of the current battles as there is too much smoke a mirrors on both sides to understand the truth. The truth will emerge fairly quickly through results and answer that question for us all.
But I stick to my simple point that for Petreus and the US / NATO to, right now, characterise Russia as poorly trained, poorly equipped, poorly led, brittle and incompetent (his words) is dangerous for those who rely on this advice politically and for the tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers on the front lines.
I am sure the Kremlin and Russian military is not a well oiled machine and has its own set of leadership issues and the infighting is well reported and known to all. But I doubt that they are under any illusions and know they are fighting a very difficult foe supported by massive behind the scenes money, machines and expertise from the US and NATO.
They would not be planning at this stage on the basis that the Ukrainian army was poorly trained, poorly equipped, poorly led, brittle and incompetent as seem the popular descriptors in the West for all things Russian. They would have a very serious, rational assessment of the situation and risks. That is a stronger position to start from than a wall of positivity and assumption of substantial relative strength.
Where do you get your assessments from?
I don’t agree with it. Russia is weaker, not stronger, than it was 18months ago. It has gotten better at fighting this war, tactically, but it is pretty beat up.
But we’ll see.
To be clear, I’m interested in what you’re reading - because I try to keep an open mind to all of this.
Have you read / listened to any of Peter Zienher’s stuff? His take is geopolitics, demographics, economics are all against Russia. Actually interested in what gsco’s thoughts are on PZ’s China perspective too.
Aussie analyst Perun on Russian grand strategy:
Primakov doctrine is particularly interesting in this context. He also has American grand strategy as well. And other nation's strategies, eg France, Japan.
@VJ - todays RPD falklands post references an observation post manned by Captain Hugh McManners - who went on to write a couple of amazing books
This one is dated, but a comprehensive study of the psychological impacts of combat, drawing on his own experiences as well as a lot of academic research from Vietnam, Korea, Israel and WW2.:
Wrong thread…
I would say Peter Zeihan's brief rundown below spells out Russian vulnerabilities pretty well. They are significant if the breakthrough to the Asov sea can be made or rail based supply lines are destroyed.
Russia, however, would have fully understood them for a long time and prepared defences and strategies well
If planning of the counter offensive took these defences seriously it will have a greater chance of success than if it relied on Petreus' caricature of Russia as incompetent.
Think the good ol USA should start to maybe be more worried about their own back yard than meddling in other countries affairs....
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jun/11/trump-indictment-republi...
Frog, do you have any evidence or suggestion that the Ukrainians are basing their planning on Petraeus’ statements? I don’t think they (Ukr) underestimate the Russians at all.
I assume the Ukranians have a very sober view. They are at the pointy end.
But such pervading hubris of innate superiority in all matters by their US proxy masters seems to reach far and wide in the halls of power. Hubris has a history of influencing decision making leading to poor outcomes geopoltically and for the proxy "partners".
The embarrassing Afghanistan outcome (wiped from the media news cycle and political discussion quick smart) most recently is just one example.
Might be too early to tell (?), but looks like the Ukrainians have had the same results for when armour extends beyond it's combined arms/air cover and is susceptible to video guided missiles, hand held missiles, air/drones etc, just like the Russians found out.
Must be the Millennia of the Witch Hunt.
Witch Hunt of former State / National Leaders.
After some research tbb felt he was alone in fuelling the fire.
No...not at all...a few others are well onto this with Witch Hunt > World Maps.
Exactly...can check out yer Local ex Leaders fate by staring into the flames.
Just guessing, but all these leaders have one thing in common..."Pro Comeback Specialists!"
Yep! Meaning the new guy is quick to mount 'Operation Party Prank' to finish off rivals for good!
You bet...each new Nazi leader has the Law charge Former Leaders for not doing something or other.
Newbie hires whole Met Force to Raid the Hideout & lay charges to tar & feather Public Enemy #1.
Nope! Not joking...usually for failing to do something no one else has to do nor worry about ever doing!
1980 > 31st March 2023 = Over 50% of Countries have had at least one past Political Witch Hunt case.
And that's Not counting impeachments or Coups...
1 Jan 2000 > 31 March 2023 = 76 Countries that charged or prosecuted their former leaders.
IOC : "Political Witch Hunting has been Officially declared an Olympic Sport!"
Corrupt Pollies : "Majority of World Voters should be charged for aiding & abetting their elected Criminals!"
tbb : "Please abuse yer Democratic Right to strike yerself off the Roll to end costly SAS Witch Hunts!"
https://www.axios.com/2022/08/26/countries-where-former-leaders-jailed-c...
Authors apologize for not including a vast number more...not even Putin could make the Top 100.
Putin : "Someone should blow up Witch Hunters!"
tbb reminds that the Naughty list doesn't include Assassinations...Japan / Pakistan...likely loads more...
Nor does it include recent former #1 charges...
#1 UK Boris / Scotland Yard investigate his Wedding Planner's Sleep-over + OBE for his Hairdresser.
#1 US Trump is charged by FBI for using Stormy Democrat Pin Up's Love Letters as Loo Paper...
#1 Scotland Nicola had SAS storm-troopers charge her & confiscate her Wicked Camper.
Dare we expose our wicked shit that don't stink...gonna need a bigger cardigan.
#1 NSW Glady's sordid affair that morally bankrupted NSW...Wot! (Ok, sure! Bit too late for that!)
Jacinda & McGowan swear they have nothing left in the Tank...(Witch Hunters are planting seeds now!)
velocityjohnno wrote:Might be too early to tell (?), but looks like the Ukrainians have had the same results for when armour extends beyond it's combined arms/air cover and is susceptible to video guided missiles, hand held missiles, air/drones etc, just like the Russians found out.
That breach was always going to be hard. US doctrine indicates that up to 25% of the lead wave can be expected as casualties.
There’s footage of a concentration of Ukr armored vehicles ‘lost’ during an assault in Zaporizhzhia oblast . A couple of tanks, some breaching vehicles and a cluster of Bradley fighting vehicles. Same footage is being reposted endlessly.
Two things here: not all of the vehicles are “K-Kills” (totally destroyed). ING act most aren’t. Some are mobility kills - “M-kills”, which can be repaired. Some have thrown tracks and been abandoned. Importantly, the crews of these survived If the Ukrainians advance over that ground they may be able to recover those.
It appears that column was likely advancing down a route that had been previously cleared - then the Russians re-mined the area using artillery launched anti-tank mines. Ukrainians did the same thing in Vulhedar during the Russian winter offensives. Mines and artillery are causing a lot of the vehicle casualties at this point.
Both Russian and Ukrainians are reporting up to 16km deep penetration into Russian lines in 96hrs in Zap. In that area it’s about 100km to the Azov Sea.
Both sides would have war gamed this counter offensive extensively and prepared in many ways as much as they are able to.
Early in a chess game nothing is very clear as to tactics and true strength unless a big mistake is made by one side early on.
This battle is even more unpredictable as there are few rules and many left field disruptive moves are possible. Dams blown, Navy ships sunk, key bridges or rail lines destroyed etc.
Massive short and long term consequences for both sides and the wider world. Geopolitics, economics, future of the dollar, political leadership in multiple countries are all going to be impacted by the outcome.
The conflict barely makes the news these days but this is serious major world history being made.
Still keen to understand where you’re getting your info from, if you’re happy to share.
America's Pyramids
Each Prez is afforded 5 years to dump Highly Classified Presidential Docs at preferred waste sites.
Watergate Tapes & all USA real serious stuff have to be dumped somewhere half safe...
After 5 years the contrived versions are displayed in America's Pyramids...(Presidential Museums)
Assuming the beloved Prez has clawed enough Parkland from local City kidz for his empire.
America's Pyramids swellnet Reviews
14 Aug 2022 tbb ~ https://www.swellnet.com/comment/853906
19 Nov 2022 tbb ~ https://www.swellnet.com/comment/864971
*Nixon *Ford *Carter - 'Safe Key' is in Secretary Gertrude's Large Binder...see: The Bulging page!
Can see Gertrude's Presidential Vault key stash compartment in this photo...Shh! Don't tell the FBI.
Nope! tbb ain't lying...that's the real deal...Gertrude watched over 3 President's Secret Files.
https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/fredericknewspost.com/conte...
*Reagan-LA Noodle Factory *Bush (snr)-Chinese Restaurant/Bowling Alley *Clinton-Car Dealership *Bush (jnr)-Warehouse *Obama-Plunket's Furniture W'house *Trump-Winter Whitehouse Chambers *Biden-In Boxes Behind his Rollerdoor sealed with sticky tape > Labelled 'Important Docs'!
Clearly President Trump is the only President to ever care to sit watch over US Presidential Secrets.
1973 NP Mara-a-Lago (Winter Whitehouse) Designed for State Visits
Property was returned in 1981 > 1984 Purchased by Trump
2017 : Winter Whitehouse [SCIF] Mara-a-Lago + [SCIF] Trump Tower
A Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility...(Only George / Hillary / The Don' are afforded SCIF)
Noting...Hillary was never Prez yet boasts [SCIF] Washington + [SCIF] NewYork
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensitive_compartmented_information_facility
[SCIF] Winter Whitehouse hosted State Visits twice to Japan's Shinzo Abe / Chinese Xi Jinping
Waiter! "There's a North Korean Missile splashdown in my opulent cup'a'soup!"
https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/news/politics/2022/07/09/former-japa...
https://edition.cnn.com/2017/02/13/politics/donald-trump-shinzo-abe-nort...
Perfect Host Trump's homely hospitality is exactly what riles the Autocrats...
How bloody dare he act so friendly...Just press the Button already...how hard can it be!
Trump being only President to ever watch over State Secrets within > [SCIF] approved facility.
Perplexing that Trump is charged for securing State Secrets in #1 [SCIF]
Trump should'a dumped his shit at the local Warehouse for all the grubs to wormhole & redact.
Being too homely & honest in Ye' Olde Style USA is now a crime & will likely cost him his freedom.
Public : "I hear Trump stored State secrets in [SCIF]...sure hope he goes to Jail!"
Trump stands in the way of Autocrats rewriting US history...& they are livid!
Each time Trump runs > The standard Prez Electoral extortion process begins...3x excused crime!
Kiss & Tell Democrat Porn Star candidate sabotages Presidential campaign...people are over it!
Trump is guilty of securing State Docs that "All" other Presidents left easily accessible for goons!
Once again the Democratic Media brainwash dills into believing Trump cares least of US secrets.
If that were true...Then why does Trump store US secrets in approved [SCIF].
Trump's signature Stormy Centrefold hasn't come unstuck yet & FBI have no way of breaking the seal.
State Secrets of last President are safely with same President until his 5 year wait is up...Why!
Because he is again running for Prez within that 5 year time frame...(Past Prez in waiting!)
eg: Winter Whitehouse Docs will be transferred back to Whitehouse...via Trump's prison locker!
Again...tbb has little time for Trump but like most of the World...fed up with overreaching witch hunts!
Media have reached a new low in divide and conquer...only the corrupt Power brokers are on trial here!
Twin Towers Shady Storytime...best examples a non approved [SCIF]
$$$ grand strategy…
https://m.
After browsing a range of ex military western "experts" viewpoints it seems the hubris is universal.
One wonders how accurate the war gaming simulation has been when built into the models is "Superior NATO standard training and equipment" put against " a poorly trained, poorly equipped, brittle incompetent opposition".
My guess is that if even a degree of this hubris was fed into models the results and strategies planned would be inaccurate.
At best this is sub optimal. At worst this pervading hubris could be disastrous and cruel for Ukraine.
11 days in and so far the hubris factor seems to have been a major model input.
do you reckon there's hubris involved frog?
But what about the hubris?
I’m not sure which sources you’re reading but most credible commentators are pretty sober about the counter-offensive.
https://www.csis.org/analysis/ukraines-offensive-operations-shifting-off...
https://rusi.org/explore-our-research/publications/commentary/ukraines-c...
I follow a couple of Russian sources on Twitter and Telegram. They’re not exactly bullish right now.
Plenty of comments like ‘things are difficult in X, Y and Z” “we have withdrawn to a second line of Defence at Q” “we are launching counter attacks at P” etc
It seems like you think that articles written for open source, relatively mainstream media, are influencing western political leadership? Is that a fair summary of your position?
‘…countries like the Central African Republic are so desperate to turn away from the west and turn away from western colonial crimes - for which the west has rarely apologised - that it is willing to ally with Russia, China… and even at the cost of furthering the war in Ukraine.’
https://m.
- cue the 5.40 minute mark of the above vid…
There is always a big picture ;)
A bigger picture that we’d maybe prefer not to see.
- like the continued UK and US supply of weapons to Saudi backed militias in Yemen…
Some in the media want to cry foul about a silly golf tour partnership with the Saudis, yet for over 8 yrs the UK and US have been supplying weaponry and helping continue and facilitate another war…
International rules based order ? Protecting matters of national security ? Furthering economic stability ? Upholding democracy and providing prosperity ? ;););)
Freedumb $
https://www.opensecrets.org/news/reports/capitalizing-on-conflict/yemen-...
Etarip, The political class lives and breathes their respective group think. In a world of massive complexity and nuance, with limited time and huge stakes they almost have to do so otherwise the group would spit them out or they would struggle to function without a simple main narrative to cling to when dealing with issues. That colours their decisions.
But I think accurate and inaccurate narratives filter down to operational levels. Just like the Murdoch news around the world mostly just know what to think and write without much input from above.
The famous quote is: "It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends upon his not understanding it."
I only have impressions based on unsystematic browsing with a sceptical eye. However, my instincts for group think being very much at work in the West's military keep being triggered.
The themes of Russian ongoing weakness and unchanging incompetence just seem to be sprinkled everywhere as a given. The overweighting of the value of brief fragmented western delivered training and "superior" equipment (despite it being a huge hotchpotch of often unfamiliar, incompatible old long mothballed gear) is also everywhere in commentary.
You once mentioned procurement issues for the ADF where equipment is incompatible and can't be integrated well because it was sourced from many countries without integration in mind. Ukraine has that issue x 10
This possible mismatch between assessment and reality all has to filter down and weaken strategy to some significant degree.
Just an impression - not backed by papers or deep analysis. But a pretty persistent strong impression.
We shall see.
Wilhelm, that quote is excellent. Perfectly applicable to any form of working corruption…
- most notable participants being career politicians and beneficiaries of the military industrial complex ;)
This vid I had archived from almost a year ago… it has interesting relevance to many things still ongoing regarding the growing rejection of the US not only throughout Africa, but also in latin America.
https://m.
- 5 mins in is excellent and the example at 5.30min mark of vid explains a lot $$$
- more recently, India decided against a further military alliance offered by the US… their foreign minister S.Jaishankar (minister for external affairs) ridiculed the west for their ‘nato template mindset’.
And, in the meantime, in the bigger picture, maybe spare a thought for how the Taiwanese may view Ukraine …
It’s important to recall that the US - as they did with Ukraine - continually guarantee Taiwan that they will ‘defend’ them and provide assurances of assistance and support in the event of armed conflict.
So… how’s that all working out, in reality ? And how are the countries that the US proclaimed to ‘defend and liberate’ or ‘return to democracy’ going after their intervention?… Ukraine is a developing wasteland.
And still, the question remains…
(Like Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Libya, Ukraine etc etc) How have any of these countries or peoples benefited exactly ?
?
‘To be an enemy of America can be dangerous, but to be a friend is fatal.’
- Henry Kissinger
So Jelly it's all about the money in that video? Whoever offers more wins?
Not sure if anyone wins ;)
Whoever throws the most money around, I dunno…
Whoever gifts the most bombs, who knows ?
May depend on working out what there is to actually ‘win’ ;)
This sums up the context best…
“There is too much talking at, instead of talking with.”
https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/geopolitics-decanted-by-silverado/...
China and Russia. An alliance, an alignment or a marriage of convenience. Good podcast.
Frog, there’s a significant gap between military and political actors. Rightfully so.
Decisions around providing arms to Ukraine are political, and informed by far wider influences than simply military value. Generals don’t really get a vote in them, other than answering questions like ‘what can we do quickly?’ or ‘I want to provide this, can it be done?’. Even the intelligence that informs political leaders will be drawn from different analytical agencies than defence. Anecdotally, I’ve heard that the defence intelligence agencies’ advice to US government (and probably other western counties) prior to the collapse of the Afghan security forces in 2021 was consistent and pretty accurate. This just wasn’t agreed by other parts of government, and hence wasn’t taken seriously.
I’d also offer that a lot of the points you bring up about Ukraine - overconfidence in capability, challenges of integration of new equipment, maintaining adequate combat forces - are equally as valid, if not more so, when applied to Russia.
If you get a chance to read the rusi and csis articles I posted earlier you’ll see the very qualified and sober kind of analysis that is too often ‘dumbed down’ for easy consumption in general media. The csis one in particular is thorough.
Getting back to the USofA.
Security or Primacy?
https://tnsr.org/2023/06/why-did-the-united-states-invade-iraq-the-debat...
Yes, I read them. Reassuring to see serious and balanced analysis and respect for your opponent
That is how it should be when making decisions on tactics that put life and limb of thousands at risk.
Tough to keep that approach in a pressure cooker politicised environment.
etarip wrote:Getting back to the USofA.
Security or Primacy?
https://tnsr.org/2023/06/why-did-the-united-states-invade-iraq-the-debat...
Long read. I skimmed it. Brought back some memories. Lots of factors at work.
My memory was that there was a genuine, but very naive, belief that they could create a new liberal democracy in Iraq. This was more than a little a biproduct of Bush's evangelist born again christian background. He used to have bible study meetings with his white house team daily.
Resulting US business opportunities didn't hurt either - blow up the infrastructure then bring in US business to rebuild it with any price no scrutiny contracts.
Of these two motivations, the first died on the vine as a strategy. Too hard.
The second - make money from blowing up stuff and then rebuilding is always popular.
Jelly Flater wrote:Not sure if anyone wins ;)
Whoever throws the most money around, I dunno…
Whoever gifts the most bombs, who knows ?May depend on working out what there is to actually ‘win’ ;)
This sums up the context best…
“There is too much talking at, instead of talking with.”
Jelly, what I got from that video is a perceived lack of investment (infrastructure, etc) from the US so these countries are turning to China, Russia as there is more money to get from that direction. It was discussed in kinda negative terms but is it negative or positive? Most people in this forum would be celebrating that; aren't most people here against US influence so not investing overseas would be seen as a good thing?
The Trump indictment in full… worth a read if you have the time(or inclination)
https://d3i6fh83elv35t.cloudfront.net/static/2023/06/trump-indictment.pdf
Peak stupidity. Now if only Trumpy had the secret stuff on his laptop and had accidently left it at a repair shop or in emails on his Blackberry's private unsecured email account he would have been ok.
@flollo… I reckon its more about the motives and intent behind supposed US ‘investment’. This was highlighted by the discrepancy between funds allocated to one country (Ukraine) in contrast to twenty countries in need of assistance.
Summed up by this gem…
- ‘The US government always prioritises projects that back the military industrial complex.’
Some masterful analysis and commentary :
https://m.
"...Progressives largely fail to realize that voting for war is an environmental policy, an education policy, a health-care policy, and an economic policy. The opportunity costs are enormous, when one considers what else could have been done with the $113 billion in US taxpayer money that was allocated to Ukraine in 2022, most of it for military spending. Yet The Squad and Bernie Sanders and Ro Khanna have supported the war, notwithstanding the harm it does to the causes they supposedly cherish. Nor is it lost on everyone that the sum of the cuts agreed to in the debt-ceiling negotiations are roughly commensurate with America’s Ukraine splurge.
Connected to Ukraine is the question of Hunter Biden. The First Failson, as the New York Post’s censored-but-vindicated Hunter Files reporting showed, was earning $83,000 a month to serve on the board of Burisma, a shady Ukrainian energy firm, and in 2015 arranged meetings between its executives and his father, then the Obama administration’s point man on Ukraine.
The FBI is currently sitting on a document that is rumored to directly implicate President Biden. There’s already enough from Hunter Biden’s laptop to justify serious exploration of what exactly he was doing on the board of Burisma. And what exactly did “10 held by H for the big guy” mean in an email related to a Chinese deal in which Hunter was involved?
These questions have been ignored by liberal outlets, but Republicans in Congress are pressing them. The Trump indictments serve to crowd out news that might hurt Biden’s re-election. No doubt Biden will muster energy for a final sprint in which he talks up his bipartisan infrastructure bill and his student-debt-cancellation efforts, but the heart of the campaign is lawfare against Trump.
A certain kind of Republican and independent voter will be enraged by the blatant double standard. I know a few former Never Trump Republicans who now give Trump money not because they like him or his policies, but rather because they are so disgusted by the Trump derangement circus. That said, an equal or greater number of former or potential Trump voters will turn away from the election as the legal troubles mount.
Meanwhile, out on the hustings, Donald Trump—the only man to serve four years as president without seeming to age one day—is speaking to his people. Steadily bringing up the counter arguments, doing his thing, playing the martyr, and with total confidence promising to end the war “in 24 hours.”
War-drunk Democrats don’t even notice Trump’s pro-peace rhetoric, which during the four years of his presidency was matched by relatively pro-peace policy. But I suspect many voters will."
https://compactmag.com/article/how-lawfare-became-biden-s-campaign-strategy
$ideshow
https://m.
&pp=ygUUZm9yYmVzIGJyZWFraW5nIG5ld3M%3D frog wrote:Peak stupidity. Now if only Trumpy had the secret stuff on his laptop and had accidently left it at a repair shop or in emails on his Blackberry's private unsecured email account he would have been ok.
Yeah, I think you’ll find that the particular info that he had is the major cause of his woes. A. It’s not routine correspondence that is classified by the sender as they write it. Pretty much all specific classified info. B. You don’t get ‘sent’ this stuff on an email. You have to ask for it.
False equivalence.
The US has a classified information problem. Too much stuff is classified when it probably doesn’t need to be. Creating a management problem. And the stuff that needs to be classified is shared with too many people. Creating a management problem. And then there’s this bullshit.
@syppo
Bwahahahahahahaha
I don't really care what you think etrippin... but that's a bit uncalled for...
and, I don't really adhere to or advocate everything that I post. I post what I find interesting, or an interesting perspective. and I found that an interesting (and credible) perspective...
I know you won't, because you are firmly in one camp. a camp that has accepted the 'left's' new found war mongering as perfectly acceptable
and a camp, that is totally dismissive and obtuse to anything that criticises the big guy
but seriously, do you still think there's no there 'there' re. hunter?
you still seriously ok that the 'liberal' media has some self imposed black ban on anything H, big guy, burisma etc.?
ie. not newsworthy?
you seriously think the fbi can keep a lid on all the new stuff bubbling away around notes, tapes, millions $, and a sitting pres. for another 18 months or so?
(they probably can... as we have seen...)
none of this stuff concerns you at all?
if so... bizarro world you are living in...
Look at all of the piss in that thing you posted.
- “ The FBI is currently sitting on a document that is rumored to directly implicate President Biden”
Read it again. “Rumored to”. By whom?
- provided to the FBI? By whom?
- Republicans are as invested in the war game as the Dems. If not more. Historically.
- Trump is happy to threaten war, to risk war and probably to go to war - but for different things. He INCREASED the number of troops in Syria ffs.
- the same people (you) that are hyperventilating about “rumours” about “the big guy” just seem so hypocritically silent about the extended Trump family grifting - Saudis anyone? I’ll agree with JF here - the courting of the House of Saud by successive IS administrations (and the UK and the ‘west’) is one of the most disgusting abrogations of moral decency. But why’s Trump so invested?
My laughter was at the apparent complete lack of self-awareness you demonstrate in posting this stuff. Camps or no camps.
Peak stupid by Trump was my main point..
The technically incorrect equivalence was just stirrng the pot.
Trumo used to shock me but that was expected.
The Biden family has surprised many by moving into shock territory as more and more emerges.
Let's say what if Trump was the hero of the hour and no one noticed or cared...then what!
Just so happens that is the case...and it's not hard to prove either...
Here's how the White House turnstyle spins on Inauguration Morning.
Feds escort both Prez hired Moving Vans out to Post Prez residence & in for New Prez.
6 hours are allocated by 95 "Vetted" Whitehouse Staff to move gear out >(clean)> stack new gear in.
During the morning the First Ladies & Prez sit for Coffee on the Lawns then it's off to The Inauguration.
NARA pick up the X Files & store them in expensive Washington Vault until The Prez Pyramid is Built.
Sure...occasionally a Dodgy Warehouse better fits the bill if Lot's of gear is involved.
Only on 20 Jan 2021 none of this happened...(Correct!) Nothing went to plan!
Joe blames Trump & NARA blames Trump for their own failings.
NARA's ongoing absolute failure at securing, collecting & preserving Prez docs was blamed on Trump.
How & Why!
Trump delayed signing for Office of Management Budget & this delayed NARA from securing pick up!
Trump's defence says that's no excuse...since Dec...Trump ensured all Staff were compliant with NARA.
All their shit was neatly stacked...
There is No deadline to pick up the Docs on Inauguration Day...NARA failed to show at week long exit.
https://www.govexec.com/management/2021/02/records-transfer-trump-white-...
Hang on...thought tbb insisted the magic happened over 6 hours...Yeah! Well, that's down to Creepy Joe!
Joe reckoned he was gonna die from the Trump Strain so insisted on $730,000 White House detox
*$73,000 overtime pay!
*Every possible Surface of 55,000ft sq Mansion to be cleaned...includes all furniture, counters, cabinets
*New Painting $77,000 & Covering of Walls / Drapes...on & on...every fucking ant had to be sprayed!
*New Carpets $167,000...{Importantly!} Starting in the Eisenhower Executive Office Wing.
Noting...pressure was on to get the secret files out & now, before the Tradies used them as loo paper!
*$185,000 Didlake Carpet Cleaning
*Deep Clean of Rugs $65,000 > Again...every Pile of papers were equally shit & had to go in a hurry!
Paranoid Joe's Unprecedented Inaugural Detox was never gonna happen in 6 hours nor by Vetted staff.
Even the fucking Fire place Logs had to be wrapped in plastic & stored...(Paranoid!)
Joe breaks only House rule of No Outsiders > Hiring Unvetted Work Crews
Tradies come on fast...likely no time for Covid / Security Tests, just toss out Secret Files for Deep Clean.
Only when Joe moved in did his precious Vax / Test Staff Mandate kick in...(Just let the tradie's die!)
Joe multivaxed & popped antivirals invents rebound covid to cough 2x Covid over White House walls!
Could do with another coat!
Trump was best positioned to save the day & secure Docs in next safest SCIF Winter Whitehouse.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensitive_compartmented_information_facility
MSM : "Mara-a-Lago was not an Authorized Location for storing, possession of Classified Documents!"
[Factcheck]
100% Mar-a-Lago was #1 SCIF in USA @ Jan 2021...(All Say Aye!...there is no argument about it!)
With NARA asleep at the wheel...this was a dutiful display of security by former Prez!
There is no other way around it...only Trump provided a secure option for 230 years of US treasures.
Trump started his Exit one week early & White House Staff were ever so grateful for his kind gesture!
Mostly as Joe was breakin' their backs with his impossible 230 year make over in 6 hours!
14th Jan Vacating the Executive Eisenhower with Suited Rep' Envoy standing guard alone mostly...
TV world ...'Wow! Lots of Flat Packs goin' into the White House'...well fuckin' durr...Go ask Joe! 'Morons!'
Why! Coz unlike other incoming Prez > Joe had no Cabinet Member to watch over his VIP Deep Clean!
Joe or NARA never gave a fuck about who accesses or makes off with the Hot Docs..
Dumbass Dem' Comedians were crackin' jokes 'bout Rep' nobodies making off with National Treasures!
Yes! Exactly wot happened...all had to go, to please paranoid Joe...(Again!) Where's Joe / NARA ?
Whole crew here can see the dingbat Democrat Circus...laughing at Desperate Democracy at Work!
Checking on some photos it appears each Rep' Staff member took home their fav' items & none cared!
Repeating...Joe's Covid Mantra....It's all gotta go...Take all the fuckin' diseased Treasures...move it!
Alright already ol' man...just chill!
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9160819/Trumps-Two-moving-truck...
14th Jan onward Trump stepped up security well above & beyond unreliable piss arse NARA.
Still with Full Prez Powers he ordered Sheriff's Chopper + Offshore Patrol Boats to secure Nat' Secrets!
Trump ordered 8pm Traffic Bans for several days surrounding Mar-a-lago...
Cops even hunted down..shot at & caught several bad guys that were sniffin' out National Treasures.
White House Historical Society : "Confirm all items being removed are being handled appropriately!"
Factcheckers : Well durr! Just like we were gonna say!
About this point...No one gives a shit wot Lazy Joe/ NARA / judges think some 2 years later...Fuck them!
They obviously least care about securing National Secrets...as they never turned up on WH D Day.
Trump's move was secured & over long before these VIP snowflakes cried about new Colour Scheme.
Current Dem / Judges are crying Crocodile tears about Trump's Hodad's access to Top Secrets...
Obama's Plunkett's Furniture Warehouse boycotted Vetted Labour to save on fit out...
Here again we see Democrats too tight to pay for Vetted Labor with Top Secrets.
Preferring that any tradies can spend weeks on the Loo reading them. (Dem's do not give a shit!)
Yes! Classifed Docs
https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2022/09/21/letter-surfaces-of-...
https://foxvalleylabornews.com/tag/barack-obama-presidential-center/
Every single chance they get they trade off Nat security of Prez Docs for cheapest Tradie deals.
Quick...call in the Judge!
Crew can be sure that...this Witch Hunt has zero to do with security...more about looking for their arses!
Pro White House Boxer wraps this up...Joe ordered the unprecedented removal of the whole contents.
Trump did everyone a favour as NARA has never & could never transfer such volume like this.
No coincidence they were missing in action.
Dickbrains pick on Trump for Squishing 230 yrs White House junk into his Winter White House!
Never once did they compensate Trump for supervising Joe's unprecedented weeklong VIP makeover!
Think about the Downtown NARA Storage bill for 230 years of White House Treasures!
Reckon Trump's Bathroom alone has saved a $1m Downtown Top Shelf Security Vault...it's not funny!
Common decency shown to Staff & common sense have no place in Joe's heart & mind!
So now the Dems wake up to the fact that their Prez has been in a coma for 230 years!
Like where did we put that thing we wanna sue Trump with...wake up, or live under Prez Trump!
Can now unbelievably motion that Joe's Govt is eroding democracy faster than Trump.
Cannot believe Americans are lapping up Joe's Hot Apple Pie...it's rotten to the core! Wake Up USA!
Nov / Dec 2020 Chairs of House Committees + House oversight informed Archivists of such event.
Nothing happened so NARA wear pie on their face as Trump does their Job while on the Job...end!
Tbb. Problems with that version of events is that what Trump is being prosecuted for is not retention of presidential records.
While that they were ‘presidential records’ may turn out to be the central pillar of Trump’ defence, it probably isn’t going to work.
It’s a tenuous chain of events you describe, and none of it explains the obstruction, lying and evasions
Here is Trumps own AG (also AG to George HW Bush) eviscerating Trumps defence on Fox
https://www.reddit.com/r/InterestingVideoClips/comments/14ahfpl/battle_p...
no hyperventalating here
there's plenty of hyperventalating... but most certainly not here...
dude, I can, and have, acknowledged many times that trump and co. are as corrupt as fuck, he's a disgrace
but with you... ya mates... and the big guy... there's never any conceding or acknowledging at all... not a micronmetre is given... never...
now you might actually believe big guy is innocent, and there's nothing there...
but as the plumes of copious smoke start to escape the sealed container that is the media / fbi / intelligence / permanent washington industrial bullshit complex... this is looking less and less likely by the day... with etrippin looking more tripped out by the day...
just a little '...maybe...' '...possibly...' here and there from you and the complex would go a long long way to showing you guys are not (still) (just) totally deranged...
but nah, there's just flat out denial... and tedious cries of conspiracy theory... even after 6 years of ACTUAL conspiracy have been revealed...
the obtuseness and hypocrisy is unbearable
and that's the real issue for a lot of us - the next level hypocrisy
hypocrisy that finds new inconceivable heights, with every 'developement'
"- Republicans are as invested in the war game as the Dems. If not more. Historically."
no doubt...
but they don't have the whole media / government / intelligence community / et al, all doing their deceptive batting for them...
the level of cooperation / collusion / conspiring is impressive to say the least...
and...
"If not more. Historically"
totally!
key word... "Historically"
the dems have become what they so vehemently claimed to despise
and that is the real real issue for a lot of us
tbb apologizes for tenuous chain of events as he is not a paid US investigative journalist.
However! Would glibly defend it's the most earnest & reliable Timeline of events on offer.
If any come across a better complete reasoned version, then you've had 2 & half years to bring it.
So where do we read this Apple Pie version of The White House Big Day Out!
Not one lazy fucker has bothered to recount Change of Power at the guts of this Court Case!
Why! As tbb said...no one followed US Prez protocol & that is the smoking gun all are hiding.
Until now journalists steered away from this ugly truth but each day on, flaws will unravel in Court!
If it is #1 News of the day then where & by who...tbb scoured far for any timeline to bust this version!
Be great if any in US cared half as much about their National Treasures...never gonna happen is it!
That's the point...tbb can't see any Courts charging or convicting for what Dems least give a shit about!
Each step they take along this road further exposes US Presidential flaws in clumsy Election handover.
Dems will further destroy US Democracy more than Trump & will still have to defeat themselves!
tbb never picks these timelines...this being low hanging fruit that lands in yer lap from a world away...
If it stinks from here then ya know why Joe / Dems are on the nose...tbb just joins the dots.
Sure! Love to read Dem's [3rd & Final Factcheck] version...be a real scream...
On how Trump Convoyed 230 years of US History into his Bathroom live on Dem's Comedy Chanel.
Why did Dems parody Trump's National Treasure Heist nightly but now swear it's crime of the century!
Now be like...Oh Fuck! He cleared out the lot...(Again!) Go see Joe / NARA about why that was...Huh!
All know who the Joke is & on & who has egg on their face...just check yer Polls any day of the week!
Same...wrote heaps against Trump & often but this shit stinks & we haven't reached rock bottom yet...
Trump smuggles in classified Stormy centrefold, sits on gold prison loo, skyping tricks for Putin kisses.
None wanna see that...but that's the end game & all know it! Again! Stop this Shit to prevent #1 Shit.
Septic Tanks are going to Septic Tank