theyre part of a transnational syndicate working to subvert democracy and permanently/institutionally cement authoritarian rule to uphold their interests.

russian state/intelligence/oligarchs, domestic oligarchs from various industries, psyops firms like cambridge analytica and 'israeli' psy group, fossil fuel conglomerates, white nationalist/nativist groups, conservative religious fundamentalists, rupert murdoch, etc.

all working in remarkable cohesion.

it isnt just america. its a well coordinated effort thats been successful here, the uk, brazil, philippines, india, australia, etc.

if you watch elections across the world...its literally the same playbook in mad countries. same targeted/specific rhetoric, same disinformation tactics, same pattern of shady election funding and subversion of campaign finance oversight, etc.

thats why youll consistently notice russian hackings, russian funding of right wing parties/lobbies, russian troll campaigns, etc in all of these stories.

theres a reason republicans in states like wisconsin and mitch mcconnell work hard to hobble election security and campaign watchdogs like the fec as russian dark money flows into their coffers and state pork barrel projects.

russia really is the mother brain to the rising illiberal order defining this era of politics.