It isn’t like people are even really trying to keep it a secret anymore. To the extent Trump talks Russia, it is to maintain a denial that’s led to mass psychosis (“mass psychosis” being a term we’re using more and more because it’s clearer and clearer). Denial is extremely powerful, every adult knows it. Most of us have experienced it about something in our lives. We know that denial is different than hiding, and no one’s doing much hiding anymore.

Trump is Russia’s friend, for whatever underlying reason (we all know the underlying reason, Trump’s investments lean Russian and Russian money is mob money, period), Trump and Russia work together. In the exact same way that the United States used to work seamlessly with Canada and Great Britain, we now work with Russia. All because of Trump.

So it’s no secret. Certainly, the Russians aren’t trying to hide it. We should also keep in mind that Russian media is official propaganda, unlike the unofficial but equally strong, propaganda in Right-Wing media here. From the Daily Beast, we see that Russian media isn’t hiding it, but may be changing a bit:

Mentioning that the American head of state had previously toyed with the idea he might be featured alongside Washington, Jefferson, Teddy Roosevelt, and Lincoln, Russia’s premier state media channel Rossiya-1 aired a graphic of Trump’s mug right up there on the mo

untain beside them.

No one has even talked about putting FDR on Rushmore for god sake, but they’re talking putting Trump up there? Even the joke is offensive.

Meanwhile, on #Russia's state TV. pic.twitter.com/9BJcy50uX7

— Julia Davis (@JuliaDavisNews) July 4, 2020

Yeah, right.

Given the frequent allusions on Russian state media to Trump as Moscow’s friend, even Moscow’s “agent” in the White House, maybe the Kremlin would like to see the enormous monument renamed Mount Russia-More.

Then the Daily Beast notes one of the things we’ve said elsewhere. This might be a point in time when Trump becomes more of a liability for Putin than he is useful. Certainly, Putin knows that everything Trump touches eventually dies. But maybe Putin might figuratively kill off the relationship before his end dies. It is nice to see it possibly happen when Trump needs Putin the most.

Trump-centric Fox News and the GOP follow the lead of America’s most pro-Russian president, churning out talking points that increasingly benefit the Kremlin. Russian state media have aired so many of Tucker Carlson’s comments that the host of Russia’s state television program 60 Minutes Evgeny Popov lovingly described Carlson as “practically our co-host.” Likewise, instead of concocting its own divisive propaganda, TASS simply quotes Devin Nunes and Mike Pompeo, both of whom sought to find and punish the leakers who exposed the Kremlin’s alleged cash for kills program instead punishing Russia for putting a price on the heads of American soldiers.

The relationship is just so damned tight. With regard to our media, we obviously don’t have proof that Hannity or Carlson are on the take from Russia. We can state with certainty that Russia is the absolute world leader in media propaganda and it would be highly out of character for them to have such a “good friend” in the White House without protecting that “good friend” with positive media coverage.

You could argue that Fox was going to cover for an American president anyway. And that’s certainly true. But they couldn’t count on the slavish bullshit being said at all times. There are differing “levels” of support and the fact that Hannity, Ingraham, and Carlson all “support” the Russian friendship is just sort of odd.

Trump isn’t in denial, he’s in terror. No one ever fully pays back their Russian mob business partners. You are in debt for life. The Fox hosts may now be in the same position, where taking some money or being threatened is then held over them for life – though that’s not as certain. But the rest of the Right? The ones who aren’t politicians? The red hat group? They are all in denial because no one’s hiding it. Not even Russian media.

****

Peace, y’all
Jason
[email protected] and on Twitter @MiciakZoom