THE PUBLIC EYE:Speaking Truth to Power
More and more of my friends tell me they can't bear to watch the news, because they can't stand to hear about the latest Trump outrage. Some unfortunates are afflicted with tinnituswhere they constantly hear a ringing or buzz in the background. The U.S. is subjected with the political version of this -- Trumpitus -- where there's always some Trump news item droning in the background. To deal with this backdrop of malevolence, to protect our sanity, you and I have to agree to stand up and proclaim the truth.
1.We're under attack by the Russians. The most disturbing conclusion from the Mueller Report is that Russia made a concerted effort to alter the results of the 2016 election. "The Russian government interfered in the 2016 presidential election in sweeping and systematic fashion." Vladimir Putin and his cronies wanted Trump to win and engaged in a variety of technical efforts to help him. It's not clear what the overall impact was. Russians operatives were active in key swing states -- such as Michigan,Ohio, and Pennsylvania -- but it's not provable that the Russian efforts resulted in Trump's 78,000 vote margin. What is clear is that the Russians helped the Trump campaign by concerted social-media campaigns and hacking Clinton-campaign emails.
There's no evidence that Russian interference has abated. Indeed, if one looks at the Putin's objectives, there's no reason for the Russians to stop because they are succeeding. Russian efforts have weakened U.S. morale and diminished our role as leader of the "free" world. (They have also weakened the European Union and brought the United Kingdom to the brink of chaos.)
-more-
