Do Russians really want Bernie Sanders or is their real goal creating chaos?

Do the Russians really want Bernie Sanders as President or are they trying to create chaos and further undermine America’s (and the world’s) faith in U.S. democracy?

Brian Barrett raises the issue in Wired. The catalyst for this discussion was a Washington Post report that “Russia is attempting to help (Sanders’) presidential campaign as part of an effort to interfere with the Democratic contest.” According to reports, intelligence officials have told lawmakers that Russia seems to be doing disinformation and propaganda campaigns to bolsters Sanders and Donald Trump.

Barrett believes the real goal is to get Trump back in office — with the larger goal of creating and nurturing chaos in the United States’ democracy and institutions.

“The 2020 playbook remains the same, say Clint Watts, a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute who studies Russian interference efforts: Elevate Trump, play up that Sanders got a raw deal, and tear down the leading institutional Democrat—then Clinton, now Biden and Bloomberg. Instead of Jill Stein, 2020 has Tulsi Gabbard, who has not left the race and whom Russian media, Watts says, regularly praises.

“The Kremlin’s strategy for a year has been very straightforward,” Watts says. “They would like to see Trump reelected.””

Indeed, you can easily consider “game over” if there’s a third party. I’m among those who feel that if Sanders is the Democratic nominee it will be a rerun of the 1972 Richard Nixon-George McGovern race since the Republican party, GOP news media and entertainment political media will have a field day. Why? Because (1)Sanders has not been vetted as thoroughly as many other candidates and (2) many Americans don’t understand the difference between socialist and communist and he and the Democratic Party will be painted as being communist. “High concept” political ads will be easy.

“And while Sanders strongly condemned any interference by Russia in his statement, he also implied to reporters later that the Post report came out Friday because the Nevada caucuses were the next day, fueling the same grievances Russia feasted on in 2016 and still does today. Russia wants Sanders voters to think the system is rigged. (Trump is a fan of this narrative, as well, as he was four years ago.)

…So, yes, Russia continues to support Sanders—or, more specifically, the narrative that the process is rigged against him. That’s not the same as wanting Sanders in the White House.”

As we discuss the news of Russia supporting Trump and/or Sanders, here’s a re-up of “Kremlin’s Strategy for the 2020 U.S. Election: Secure the Base, Split the Opposition” https://t.co/OIvut6ic4i

— Clint Watts (@selectedwisdom) February 22, 2020

Russia is trying to help Bernie Sanders win the primary NOT because they want him to be the next president — it’s because Russia wants Trump to get re-elected. Sanders would lose in a wipeout, taking the Democratic House majority with him. Trump knows that, and Russia knows that.

— Jon Cooper ?? (@joncoopertweets) February 22, 2020

Trump is "using the power of the presidency to conceal" Russia's 2020 scheme to re-elect him, says former acting AG https://t.co/EAhKEM1BUL

— Robert holgate (@415holgate) February 22, 2020

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photo credit: Gage Skidmore Bernie Sanders via photopin (license)

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