How inconceivable would it have seemed a couple decades ago that Russians would have infiltrated every sector of our security and energy infrastructures as well as our electoral processes in the 21st century?  Who would have believed that the NRA and other conservative groups would be in cahoots with such attempts and attacks on our democratic systems?   With Maria Butina’s arrest, Red Sparrow-style, the spy-gal offered sex in exchange for positions to influence political leaders, she worked with the NRA to funnel Russian money to Republican campaigns; those Republicans are compromised!  There is leaked information regarding Butina and another Russian, meeting with U.S. Treasury Department officials in 2016.   The Patriots that fought for our country are rolling in their graves!   Anyone seen pics of Confederate-flag-waving Americans now waving Russian flags?  How are people so naïve or misdirected?  And for those who keep repeating the false-mantra: “there is no evidence of collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign” …. these chanters are either extremely misinformed OR they constantly seek to misinform any who will listen to them.  Several members of Trump’s campaign have been indicted — more to come.

George Washington, in his presidential farewell address urged Americans, “to remain on their guard against the insidious wiles of foreign influence, the jealousy of a free people ought to be constantly awake, since history and experience prove that foreign influence is one of the most baneful foes of Republican Government”.  He spoke of his hope that our nation “as a free, enlightened, and at no great distant period, a great nation, would give to mankind the magnanimous and too novel example of a people always guided by an exalted justice and benevolence”.  Instead we have a totally unfit person in the presidency telling the electorate that a “free press is the enemy of the people”, coming out with autocratic enemy lists, disputing our own intelligence agencies, aiding and abetting the very enemy who authorized cyberattacks against our democracy.

Senator Jeff Flake tweeted, “The Russian ambassador says that ‘important verbal agreements’ were reached at the Helsinki summit.  What are those commitments, Mr. President?  Congress needs to know!”   Ex-Republican Steve Schmidt answered Flake, “Senator, working with Senator Corker, you have the ability to find out the answer to this urgent question by taking control of the U.S. Senate and removing McConnell as Majority Leader.  You could make certain the U.S. interpreter is called before the Intelligence Committee”.

Trish Forsyth Voss

Dan Coates, Director of National Intelligence alerts, “the warning lights are blinking red again … our digital infrastructure that serves this country is literally under attack!”  Russia has successfully hacked the U.S. power-grid, water, energy, nuclear and commercial facilities”, since at least the spring of 2016.  They’ve used malware and spear-phishing to infiltrate and interfere with our power plant’s control systems, and our elections.  Cyberattacks of this level are acts of war!  So, why did Trump abolish by Executive Order the Cyber-security Coordinator Role in May 2018?   It was decided that National Security Advisor, John Bolton, could fill that role; is he a cyber-security expert?   Paul Ryan said, “There is no question that Russia interfered in our election and continues attempts to undermine our democracy here and around the world.  President Trump must appreciate that Russia is not our ally.  There is no moral equivalence between the U.S. and Russia”.

Former CIA Director , John Brennan said, “Donald Trump’s press conference in Helsinki rises to and exceeds the threshold of high crimes and misdemeanors.  It was nothing short of treasonous.  Not only were Trump’s comments imbecilic, he is wholly in the pocket of Putin.  Republican Patriots: Where are you???”   Senator Jeff Flake said, “I never thought I would see the day when our American president would stand on the stage with the Russian president and place blame on the U.S. for Russian aggression.  This is shameful!”  Putin wants the Magnitsky Act sanctions overturned NOW!   That was one attempt at collusion with the Trump campaign.  Trump is soon bowing out of Syria?  Why?  Russia is growing stronger with each passing day.  Russia exports oil and soybeans; they stand to export more soybeans soon due …. to Trump’s tariffs; the U.S. will be exporting less.  Who is Trump serving?

A reporter in Helsinki asked Putin if he had wanted Donald Trump to win the presidency.  Putin responded, “Yes, I did; yes I did, because he talked about bringing the U.S. – Russia relationship back to normal”.

Deputy Rosenstein reported 7/14/18 on Mueller’s latest round of indictments for: 13 top Russian GRU military officials for cyber-hacking, theft, interfering in our electoral processes, for hacking state electoral databases, and money-laundering.  Maria Butina, alleged Russian agent, was arrested 7/17/18,  and it is alleged she infiltrated the NRA to establish ‘back channels’ with political groups.   “Rigged, Witch-Hunt”?   I think it’s more likely to be a “Warl0ck-capture”; one coven located in D.C., another in Moscow.

Trish Forsyth Voss

Let me assure readers that I do take care to express my opinions purposefully; “words are powerful”, as can be witnessed by our entire nation in seeing the results of the divisive rhetoric from our Divider-in-Chief.  Violence and hate-crimes are abounding in this atmosphere of hatred and bigotry.  Trump indeed has the majority of the populace “bewildered, perplexed, baffled, and reeling”; I would add: appalled and horrified!  For those upset by writers using labels like: Nazis, let me point out as I did two years ago …. American Nazism is resurging….so much so that people are being emboldened to run for public office on the platforms of white-identity politics and outright bigotry.      The following are just a few examples: Arthur Jones, a long-time neo-Nazi and Holocaust-denier won the primary for GOP congressional office in Illinois.  Paul Nehlen (R-WI.) is running to replace Representative Paul Ryan. Nehlen appeared on fascist, white-power podcasts, making racist, anti-Semitic remarks on social media, promoting “conspiracy theories that Jewish people supposedly have undue influence in the media and other industries” (the same exact prejudice urged on by Hitler in Nazi Germany to justify his later exterminations).     Sean Donahue ran to replace Rep. Lou Barletta (R-PA.) and has claimed that Black Lives Matter and Antifa are preparing an armed insurgency in the U.S.   In 2017, Donahue was convicted of making terroristic threats against a PN district attorney.  John Abarr, a white-supremacist ran for the Montana State House of Representatives as a Democrat, though he has run for office before as a Republican; his website shows his key platform is “pride and dignity for whites”.      Corey Stewart, defeated in his primary run for U.S. Senate in Virginia; during his failed 2017 governors race he made several joint appearances with white-supremacist Jason Kessler, the organizer of the deadly Charlottesville rally.  A few dropouts of races: Augustus Invictus, Tom Tancredo, Seth Grossman; google them.  There are plenty flirting with white-supremacists, a few of which are Representatives:  Matt Gaetz, Dana Rohrabacher, and Lou Barletta.      Joe Arpaio, convicted for criminal contempt, was pardoned by President Trump; former sheriff in Arizona, where at least 160 detained persons died, many by supposed suicide, in his jails, which HE called “concentration camps”.   Arpaio is running for Senate in Arizona.  Steve King (R-IA.) — up for re-election this year has tweeted, “diversity is NOT our strength”, a phrase borrowed from white-supremacists.  He once said that, “America shouldn’t apologize for slavery”.   SCANDALOUS!

Trish Forsyth Voss

‘U.S. Representative Maxine Waters advocated that ‘We The People’ should confront and “protest members of Trump’s cabinet in public spaces”, which instigated an onslaught of attacks from President Trump against Ms. Waters, whom he referred to as “a very low intelligence person”, and said Waters and Pelosi are the “unhinged face of the democratic party”.   Waters was responding to situations like Kirstjen Nielson, secretary of Homeland Security, and Stephen Miller, president’s senior policy advisor, who were harassed and left restaurants before being served.  Point of irony: both were trying to obtain service from a Mexican restaurant as they were carrying out abhorrent policies against immigrants and their children coming into America from Mexico and beyond.  Paul Ryan and others calling on Waters to apologize is pure misogyny and racism.

Ryan claimed, ‘There is no place for this”.   I say that NOW in AMERICA is exactly the PLACE and TIME for this!  ‘Nevertheless she persisted.’  Waters responded, “If you want to talk about civility, you start with Trump”; she characterized him as the “chief instigator of toxic rhetoric in the current political discourse”.  We can clearly see increased violence since he took office.  Sarah Sanders was not “chased from a restaurant”; the owner respectfully asked her party to leave and they did.  Anyone who cheered for the baker refusing to bake a cake for gays, should also champion the restaurant owner’s right to serve only those who don’t ‘dishonor’ her moral convictions.  Martin Luther King Jr said, “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends”.

Today’s news:  Justice Anthony Kennedy’s decision to retire from SCOTUS in July.  If we play by the GOP rules, we will not allow confirmation votes on a SCOTUS nomination during an election year.  ‘Ex-Republican’ Steve Schmidt asserted today, “Democrats need to Hold the Line and strenuously Resist”.  Schmidt quit the Republican party this summer lamenting, “It is fully the party of Trump”.  Schmidt proclaimed, “The first step to a season of renewal in our land is the absolute and utter repudiation of Trump and his vile enablers in the 2018 election by electing Democratic majorities.  I do not say this as an advocate of a progressive agenda.  I say it as someone who retains belief in DEMOCRACY and decency.  Trump must be Obliterated. Annihilated. Destroyed”.    My own quote:  “angry snowflakes unite to form huge hail-storms, so watch out!”

Trish Forsyth Voss