“In Russia,” wrote Julia Davis, “the final outcome of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is roundly considered to be dependent on the outcome of the next [U.S.] presidential election. State media pundits are openly pining for the day when America focuses predominantly on its own issues, ceases to be a global driving force and becomes merely another “regional leader.” So of course, they’d like to see Trump win again. But… with Prigozhin’s untimely death, it’s hard to say what’s going to happen with the Internet Research Agency (Агентство интернет-исследований) in Moscow that was part of his operation. “The Trolls from Olgino” think they put Trump in the White House in 2016. This year their focus has been on Ukraine.
Russian media in general is very excited about Trump getting back into the White House. Davis reported that Kremlin-controlled state media was excited to see that “most of the GOP’s top contenders would limit or stop U.S. aid to Ukraine” but Trump is still who they prefer. “Referring to Trump’s booking record in Georgia, reporter Valentin Bogdanov, who is based in New York City, told the audience of 60 Minutes, ‘Our strawberry blonde! There is only one like him in the United States.’ In his report for the evening edition of Vesti on channel Rossiya-1, Bogdanov showcased Trump’s mugshot along with that of Frank Sinatra, Michael Jackson, and Elvis Presley. He mused that in his legal struggle, Trump likely sees his rightful place alongside Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela, like someone ‘who suffered for the sake of truth.’ During his Saturday show on channel Solovyov Live, Yevgeny Satanovsky continued the same train of thought, lionizing Trump alongside some of the most prominent historic figures: ‘He is like Nelson Mandela, like Martin Luther King Jr., he is being persecuted by an evil shadow government!’ Satanovsky feverishly claimed that Trump might be assassinated, like Abraham Lincoln or John F. Kennedy.
But, wrote Davis, “Sentiments aside, Putin’s mouthpieces are considering Trump’s runners-up, in case he is unable to reach the finish line. The Russians initially placed their hopes in Ron DeSantis, whose Russian nickname is ‘Number Two,’ but another contender captured their attention after the first Republican debate. Vivek Ranaswamy became an overnight success in Moscow, because of his geopolitical naiveté and statements about cutting U.S. assistance to Ukraine. Friday’s broadcast of 60 Minutes included a montage of Ramaswamy’s debate performance set to Johnny Thunder’s 1968 song, “I’m Alive.” Multiple clips of his statements were peppered throughout the segment and featured all over Russian state media, including RT.”
Political scientist Vladimir Kornilov pointed out, “What’s most important— the most telling moment— did you hear the excitement in the audience when Ramaswamy said he wouldn’t support continued U.S. aid to Ukraine? There was an ovation in the auditorium! This shows that Ukraine will certainly experience problems!”
Despite being pleased with Ramaswamy’s rhetoric, Kornilov surmised: “The debate has demonstrated that Trump has no real competition within the Republican party.”
…What Putin’s marauding troops weren’t able to take by force is expected to be handed over by Trump or a Trump-adjacent candidate. Political commentator Sergey Strokan openly said that the outcome of the American presidential elections will ultimately determine how and when the war in Ukraine will end.
Despite delighting in Ramaswamy’s commentary, Strokan noted, “We just watched the debate. The most important thing is that all of it was overshadowed by the one who wasn’t there: ex-President Donald Trump!” Strokan alleged that consciously or subconsciously, Ramaswamy is copying Trump, down to his mannerisms. Calling the former president “America’s diagnosis,” Strokan argued that his approach to governing the country is here to stay and Ramaswamy is one of Trump’s pupils.
Host Evgeny Popov noted, “We should take a closer look at this Mr. Ramaswamy. The last time, we had installed President Trump for Americans, but our bet didn’t quite work out. Why not try again? Let’s give it another try and see how Ramaswamy will perform, in case Trump doesn’t manage to win the post of the President.”
Perhaps recalling that Russian TV programs can also be viewed abroad, he quickly added, “Just kidding.”
It might be worth taking look at RT’s coverage of the debate: <>US presidential hopeful warns of ‘post-Zelensky warlord’ in Ukraine<>. They’re already rooting for Ramaswamy. “Continued US military aid for Ukraine risks setting the stage for a 'post-Zelensky warlord' and only pushes Russia and China closer together, Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy told a debate in Milwaukee on Thursday. Asked about the comments by state-run Voice of America, Ramaswamy added that sending more money to Kiev ‘does not advance American interests’ and that the job of the president is to look out for America first. ‘You mark my words, the way this war ends right now, without the US actually stepping in and saying we’re not going to fund any more of it, is going to be some post-Zelensky warlord takes over with a couple hundred billion dollars of American military equipment, just like what happened after the Soviets invaded Afghanistan. And you see how far that got,’ the 38-year-old tech entrepreneur added.”
Ramaswamy also said his plan to end the conflict “will actually be probably better for Ukraine. At least it comes out with its sovereignty intact, which is not the plan they’re on right now.”
“I think that this is disastrous, that we are protecting against an invasion across somebody else's border, when we should use those same military resources to prevent... the invasion of our own southern border here,” Ramaswamy said during the debate.
He also argued that the US support for Kiev is “driving Russia further into China’s hands” and accused some of his rivals of putting Ukraine ahead of the US.
“I find it offensive that we have professional politicians on the stage that will make a pilgrimage to Kiev-- to their pope, [President Vladimir] Zelensky-- without doing the same thing for people in Maui or the South Side of Chicago,” Ramaswamy said.
This provoked angry replies from former New Jersey governor Chris Christie and former vice president Mike Pence-- both of whom have recently visited Ukraine-- as well as Nikki Haley, who called Ukraine “the front line of defense” for the US and accused Ramaswamy of having no foreign policy experience.
Ramaswamy is currently ranked third in the GOP primary polls, behind Florida Governor Ron DeSantis with 13.8% but ahead of Pence (4.1%), Haley (3.1%) and Christie (2.9%).
