What’s MIA in the Trump–Putin Story
A version of the below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. As an adult, I have had two recurring dreams for […]
The Trump-Putin story still lacks crucial context in many media reports. While recent coverage has focused on Trump's recent embrace of Putin and Russia's actions in Ukraine, these stories often fail to provide the broader historical context. In my book, "How Russia Won: Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and the Fight for America," I detail Putin's decade-long campaign against the United States, which includes meddling in multiple American elections—2016, 2020, 2024, and ongoing efforts. This narrative is often dismissed as "too tough a truth" for people to grasp.
One of the primary reasons for this lack of context is that Trump's messaging has been effective in discrediting the story. He has convinced many that the allegations are "BS" and a "hoax, a witch hunt." Consequently, despite Trump's actions—such as his support for Russia's actions in Ukraine, his denigration of Ukraine's president, and his denial that Russia is continuing the war—many media outlets have not fully conveyed the bigger picture.
For instance, while The New York Times has written about Trump's efforts to rehabilitate Russia and its denial of Russian actions, these analyses lack the historical context of Russia's long-term goal of normalizing relations with Washington without compromising on Ukraine. These reports capture the current moment but fail to place it within the broader narrative of Putin's ongoing war against the United States and the West.
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