When the fascists tell you their plans, believe them
Plus: National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan says I'm right!
We had a great time at VESPERS yesterday with special guest Casey Michel, author of “American Kleptocracy” and the soon-to-be-published “Foreign Agents.” Casey taught us how to launder money. Ok, not exactly. But he did explain some of the mechanisms and tools (including shell companies) and how the demand to clean money will always exist. We also talked about Equatorial Guinea’s Teodor Obiang and his obsession with Michael Jackson. Thank you to everyone who joined us!
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ALEX’S WEEKLY RANT
People used to say Donald Trump’s use of the phrase “enemy of the people” was simply performative, meant to rile up his supporters. While the phrase dates back to the Roman Empire, it is most commonly associated with Joseph Stalin, who used it so often and so violently to repress (and kill) the people of the Soviet Union that his successor, Nikita Kruschev, rejected the phrase.
More recently, Trump and his minions have moved beyond labeling their political opponents and the media as “enemies of the people” and begun describing their plans to deal with them.
Appearing on a podcast hosted by human slug Steve Bannon, Kash Patel, who held multiple national security positions in Trump’s administration, said this:
“We will go out and find the conspirators, not just in government but in the media…Yes, we’re going to come after the people in the media who lied about American citizens, who helped Joe Biden rig presidential elections — we’re going to come after you. Whether it’s criminally or civilly, we’ll figure that out….We’re actually going to use the Constitution to prosecute them for crimes they said we have always been guilty of but never have.”
I recommend you watch at least this clip of the interview because it’s batshit crazy and dangerous, mostly because everything he mentions doing is totally illegal but you see the two of them frothing at the mouth at the idea of actually doing it.
In the waning days of Trump’s presidency, he tried to install Kash as Acting Director of CIA, which led to threats of mass resignations. The episode has most of DC speculating that Kash would be named Director of CIA were Trump to return to the Oval Office. I’m not prepared to lay out what that would mean for intelligence operations and national security because it scares the shit out of me, but in short: it would be very, very bad.
When he’s not threatening to round up the media or lying about Biden rigging the election, Kash sells merchandise online (so I will now refer to him as Ka$h). He is also a children’s author. His book, “The Plot Against the King,” is a childhood adventure about the Russia investigation (every child’s favorite subject!) in which “Hillary Queenton” tries to harm “King Donald” and the wizard “Kash” uncovers all the nefarious behavior. Trump has said he wants the book to be in every school across the country (so, this is a book they don’t want to burn).
Ka$h calls himself a patriot but seems to forget we fought the Revolution in order never to have a king again, but other than that, super clever idea.
Ka$h’s declarations are just the latest iteration of Trump and his minions broadcasting loud and clear what their intentions are.
As I was writing this, Axios published this list of Trump loyalists who are poised to take high-level positions in his administration and their plans to consolidate power and shit on the Constitution. Tucker Carlson as vice president? Steve Bannon as chief of staff? Ka$h as director of CIA? Jeffrey Clark (currently under indictment for his role in efforts to overturn a fair election) in a top position at the Department of Justice?
They are making it impossible for me to write satire!
Axios also reported on the questionnaire you have to fill out if you want to work for Trump. It clearly places loyalty to Trump above any skill set and would be hilarious if it weren’t true and about to break our country.
Also this week, conservative commentator Robert Kagan wrote a piece for the Washington Post titled “A Trump dictatorship is increasingly inevitable. We should stop pretending.” Here is a key passage:
“[T]he odds of the United States falling into dictatorship have grown considerably because so many of the obstacles to it have been cleared and only a few are left. If eight years ago it seemed literally inconceivable that a man like Trump could be elected, that obstacle was cleared in 2016. If it then seemed unimaginable that an American president would try to remain in office after losing an election, that obstacle was cleared in 2020. And if no one could believe that Trump, having tried and failed to invalidate the election and stop the counting of electoral college votes, would nevertheless reemerge as the unchallenged leader of the Republican Party and its nominee again in 2024, well, we are about to see that obstacle cleared as well.”
Trump’s minions then proved Kagan right when Senator JD Vance (reported by Axios as a potential running mate for Trump) sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken asking for an investigation of Kagan.
He also demanded an investigation of Kagan’s wife, Victoria Nuland, Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, asking if her “close relationship with her husband might compromise her judgment about the best interests of the United States” and suggesting she lose her clearances.
Again, in sending this letter, Vance proved Kagan’s point, and we get a good look at what a second (third, fourth, fifth…) Trump presidency will look and feel like. It’s not warm and fuzzy.
This rhetoric is not performative. They’re flat out telling us the scary, anti-democratic things they plan to do. I suggest we listen and make sure they never get near the presidency again.
I SHOULD BE NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER
Also this week, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said this at a press conference:
Not to toot my own horn, but beep fucking beep. That’s what I wrote a few weeks ago and what Putin himself has said. If you’re against aid to Ukraine, you’re helping Putin and contributing to him achieving his goal to destroy democracy.
THE WEEK’S LINKS
A roundup of stories you should be reading
RUSSIA
Russia Sought to Sway Weapons Watchdog Vote Using Disinformation (Bloomberg)
Revealed: The Kremlin-Connected Russians Employed By Europe’s Top Security Body (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
Alex Finley is a former officer of the CIA’s Directorate of Operations, where she served in West Africa and Europe. She writes and teaches about terrorism, disinformation / covert influence, and oligarch yachts. Her writing has appeared in Slate, Reductress, Funny or Die, POLITICO, The Center for Public Integrity, and other publications. She has spoken to the BBC, MSNBC, CNN, C-SPAN’s Washington Journal, France24, and numerous other media outlets. She was also invited once to speak at Harvard, which she now tells everyone within the first ten seconds of meeting them. She is the author of the Victor Caro series, satirical novels about the CIA. Before joining the CIA, Alex was a journalist, covering Capitol Hill, the Pentagon, and the Department of Energy. She reported on issues related to national security, intelligence, and homeland security. Did she mention she was invited to speak at Harvard?
