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Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Do not shrug your shoulders and accept the normalization of untruths.

We can’t confuse what’s necessary to win elections with the policies that we want to implement when we do.

I like political parties that aren’t owned by foreign adversaries.

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn.

The press swings at every pitch, we don’t have to.

These days, even the boring Republicans are nuts.

Dear media: perhaps we ought to let Donald Trump speak for himself!

75% of people clapping liked the show!

There is no right way to do the wrong thing.

The fight for our country is always worth it. ~Kamala Harris

SCOTUS: It’s not “bribery” unless it comes from the Bribery region of France. Otherwise, it’s merely “sparkling malfeasance”.

There is no compromise when it comes to body autonomy. You either have it or you do not.

Republican speaker of the house Mike Johnson is the bland and smiling face of evil.

“woke” is the new caravan.

Mediocre white men think RFK Jr’s pathetic midlife crisis is inspirational. The bar is set so low for them, it’s subterranean.

I’ve spoken to my cat about this, but it doesn’t seem to do any good.

The world has changed, and neither one recognizes it.

You are either for trump or for democracy. Pick one.

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

Jack be nimble, jack be quick, hurry up and indict this prick.

The republican ‘Pastor’ of the House is an odious authoritarian little creep.

You know it’s bad when the Project 2025 people have to create training videos on “How To Be Normal”.

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Open Thread:  Hey Lurkers!  (Holiday Post)

Open Threads

You are here: Home / Archives for Open Threads

Cold Grey Dawn Open Thread: Lose Ten Pounds of Ugly Fat…

by Anne Laurie|  March 11, 20254:55 am| 189 Comments

This post is in: DOGESHIT, Open Threads, Trump-Musk, Elon Musk

Again: Musk is laying out the flim flam to try to cut Social Security by $500-$700Billion per year [this is 1/3 of the program, roughly, using his ketamine math].

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— Clean Observer (@hammbear2024.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 5:06 PM

… Cut off your own head, DOGE. Not like you’re using it for anything but a MAGA hatstand!

The goal of DOGE pretty clearly appears to be:
1.) Blow up discretionary non-defense spending
2.) Find a way to stop paying around 500-700b in Social Security. Cynical take is they'll just target blue state social security payments and hold them.

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— Schnorkles O'Bork (@schnorkles.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 5:08 PM

honestly the DOGE program (you can barely call it one) might be the most unpopular policy slate every put into practice in american history tbh

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— Reconstructionist (@unavaleable.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 5:17 PM

It’s all bullshit. The real question is whether they stick with it in the face of the incontrovertible evidence that he’s completely full of it. This stuff is very easy to disprove.

— Clean Observer (@hammbear2024.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 5:13 PM

It's honestly hard to come up with a policy program more likely to blow up the GOP coalition than what they're doing

— Reconstructionist (@unavaleable.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 5:20 PM

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"efficiency" (destroying anything intoxicated rich guys think is bullshit)

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— Chatham Harrison is tending his garden (@chathamharrison.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 10:18 PM

We make a lot of food. There are some things we import, but uh.. yeah. A bunch of school stable food? It's all agribusiness.

— Schnorkles O'Bork (@schnorkles.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 11:00 PM

Elon: "this will force them to husband their current stock more efficiently!"
Buddy we use just in time logistics, the only stock we have is tied up in outstanding contracts
Elon: "Good news!"

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— Chatham Harrison is tending his garden (@chathamharrison.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 11:23 AM

Now that they have their hands on the levers of power, all they can think about is what's the most spectacularly depraved thing they can do with them. Children playing a game

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— Chatham Harrison is tending his garden (@chathamharrison.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 3:12 AM

1.) Make Big Trucks more expensive.
2.) Fuck rural communities
3.) No more social security
4.) Also, no treats, fuck you upper middle class.
Honestly just a brilliant platform. Just brilliant.

— Schnorkles O'Bork (@schnorkles.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 5:21 PM

Cold Grey Dawn Open Thread: Lose Ten Pounds of Ugly Fat…Post + Comments (189)

War for Ukraine Day 1,110: One Dare Calls It Treason

by Adam L Silverman|  March 10, 202511:05 pm| 37 Comments

This post is in: Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, Military, Open Threads, Russia, Silverman on Security, War, War in Ukraine

A spoof book cover. It has a bunny standing on it's hind legs, wearing a yellow rain coat, and holding a closed red umbrella in its right hand. It is facing slightly to the left and it's left hand is raised and pointing to the spook title, which reads: "Oh Christ. It's THIS ASSHOLE AGAIN."

In 1964 a virulent anti-Communist named John Stormer wrote None Dare Call it Treason. Today, the man who bought Trump and the United States government for a 1/3rd of a billion dollars dared to call something that isn’t treason treason.

This country’s founders knew that “treason” was a claim so vulnerable to abuse that they took the trouble to define it narrowly in the constitution: “Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort.” /1

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— Domestic Enemy Hat (@kenwhite.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 7:12 PM

/2 So Elon’s claim of treason necessarily means that (1) levying war against Russia (by being invaded) is the same as levying war against the United States, or (2) Ukraine is America’s enemy.

Or it could be that he’s a persistently ignorant amoral shit-talker.

— Domestic Enemy Hat (@kenwhite.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 7:13 PM

I think that Popehat/Ken White and Radley Balko are both correct and incorrect in their takes on Musk’s tweet. I think the better answer is that Musk, like his employee Trump, believe that anything that is said or done in opposition to him, his wants, desires, or interests is treason. Regardless of the constitutional or legal definitions. Musk, like his employee Trump, has gone all in not just on neo-NAZIism and fascism, but also on Putin and Putinism. Largely because he, like Trump, has willingly marinated himself in Russian misinformation, disinformation, and agitprop. (emphasis mine)

In late August 2023, Ilya Gambashidze was in a conference room at the office of Social Design Agency, a Russian IT company he founded that is based in Moscow, close to the world-renowned Moscow Conservatory. Gambashidze was relatively unknown in Russian politics at the time, but just a month earlier his name had appeared on a Council of the European Union’s list of Russian nationals subjected to sanctions for playing a central role in a sprawling disinformation campaign against Ukraine.

In the conference room, Gambashidze was laying out his plans for a new target: Along with his colleagues, he began drafting what would become known as the Good Old USA Project. The project was supposed to influence the outcome of the US presidential election in favor of former president Donald Trump, specifically targeting certain minorities, swing-state residents, and online gamers, among others, in a scheme that included a full-time team dedicated to the cause.

On Wednesday, Gambashidze and his company were named by the US Department of Justice among the architects of a disinformation campaign known as Doppelganger that has for the past two years been targeting Ukraine and, more recently, US elections. The Doppelganger campaign uses AI-generated content on dozens of fake websites designed to impersonate mainstream media outlets such as The Washington Post and Fox Business, using a network of fake social media accounts to disseminate pro-Russian narratives targeting audiences across the globe. Doppelganger is a Kremlin-aligned disinformation campaign that was first linked to the Kremlin in 2023 by the French government.

“Today’s announcement exposes the scope of the Russian government’s influence operations and their reliance on cutting-edge AI to sow disinformation,” FBI director Christopher Wray said in a statement. “Companies operating at the direction of the Russian government created websites to trick Americans into unwittingly consuming Russian propaganda.”

The Treasury Department had previously sanctioned SDA and Gambashidze in March for its part in the Doppelganger campaign. But the court documents unsealed on Wednesday contain a treasure trove of documents and meeting notes from Gambashidze and his colleagues, outlining in unprecedented detail the goals and tactics that the Kremlin has been deploying in order to influence the outcome of the 2024 US election.

The records also reveal the plan was discussed at the highest levels of the Russian government, with Sergei Kiriyenko, the first deputy chief of staff of the presidential executive office, playing a key role. The notes appear to show that President Vladimir Putin may have been updated on the campaign; in one meeting with Russian government officials, Gambashidze wrote that government officials told him they had “reported to the President about the project,” which the FBI agent who authored the affidavit said he took to refer to Putin.

The documents show that the orchestrators of the campaign targeted existing divisions within US society, using racist stereotypes and far-right conspiracies to target supporters of former president Donald Trump.

​​”They are afraid of losing the American way of life and the ‘American dream,’” Gambashidze writes in one document outlining his “guerrilla media” plan. “It is these sentiments that should be exploited in the course of an information campaign in/for the United States.”

The same document is full of racist and conspiratorial claims, including that Republicans are “victims of discrimination of people of color.” It adds that white middle-class people are being discriminated against with high inflation and rising prices, while “unemployed people of color end up being privileged groups of the population.”

And the goal of the campaign, from the beginning, was crystal clear: “To secure victory for [Donald Trump],” Gambashidze wrote in the Good Old USA Project planning document.

The Good Old USA plan openly admits that “none of the significant American politicians can be considered pro-Russian or pro-Putin,” and so rather than focus its efforts on trying to convince people that Russia is great, the plan called for promoting the idea that the US should be focusing its resources less on Ukraine and more on domestic issues, such as rising inflation and high gas prices.

Much more at the link.

Here is the link to the court filing if you want to see all the details.

We go now to this clip from Fox News’s Junkie Versus Junkie segment:

Constantly linking everything back to Ukraine and Ukrainians reminds me of a political platform that once rose to prominence in a powerful European state. Fueled by conspiracy theories, it found an easy scapegoat for the country’s setbacks. It did not end well

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— Tatarigami (@tatarigami.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 5:36 PM

Musk is too stupid to realize that if the HUR had decided to take him down, it wouldn’t have just been a DDOS attack on X where the IP addresses are all, conveniently, coming from Ukraine. I wonder who has the ability to spoof IP addresses at scale and has a really strong desire to see Ukraine get blamed?

Eez a puzzlement.

President Zelenskyy travelled to Saudi Arabia today so there is no address today.

Momentum

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— Maria Avdeeva (@mariainkharkiv.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 4:05 PM

Zelensky in Saudi Arabia.

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— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 12:49 PM

From The Kyiv Independent:

President Volodymyr Zelensky held talks with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on March 10, ahead of a planned meeting between U.S. and Ukrainian officials, the Presidential Office reported.

Zelensky’s team will remain in Jeddah to meet U.S. delegates and discuss the framework for a potential peace agreement with Russia on March 11. Zelensky is not expected to participate in the negotiations.

The two leaders discussed Saudi Arabia’s potential role in mediating the release of Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) as well as the return of Ukrainian children who were illegally deported to Russia, the Presidential Office said.

The Gulf countries have traditionally played the role of mediators between Russia and Ukraine, particularly in regard to prisoner exchanges.

Zelensky and bin Salman also discussed possible security guarantees for Ukraine and strategies for bringing about “a just and lasting peace.” Zelensky spoke to the prince about Ukraine’s plans to bolster defense production and the potential for cooperation with Saudi Arabia in this sector.

Ukraine is interested in further developing cooperation with Saudi Arabia in the areas of trade and energy, the Presidential Office said. The leaders discussed the potential for future Saudi investments in Ukraine and Riyadh’s contributions to Kyiv’s reconstruction efforts.

Zelensky initially intended to visit Saudi Arabia as part of a Middle East tour in February but delayed the trip due to bilateral U.S.-Russian talks in Riyadh on Feb. 18. The Saudi crown prince  reportedly wanted Ukraine represented at that meeting, but was overruled by U.S. and Russian officials.

The March 11 U.S.-Ukraine talks mark the first high-level meeting between the two nations since Zelensky’s disastrous visit to the White House on Feb. 28. Following the meeting — during which U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance berated Zelensky and accused him of being ungrateful — Washington froze military aid and paused intelligence sharing with Kyiv.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on March 10 that a successful meeting in Jeddah could lead to Washington resuming military aid deliveries. Rubio also said that Ukraine would need to agree to territorial concessions as part of a peace deal.

Rubio will take part in the Jeddah talks alongside Trump’s Middle East Envoy, Steve Witkoff, and U.S. National Security Adviser Mike Waltz. They will meet with Zelensky’s Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, and Zelensky’s Deputy Chief of Staff, Pavlo Palisa.

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Georgia:

“For the truth until the end”.
#GeorgiaProtests
Day 103

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— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 3:03 PM

It’s the end of Day 103, it’s warmer now too, and we are having the first overnight protest on Rustaveli during these continuous protests. As behind many initiatives, theatre people seem to be behind it. #GeorgiaProtests

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— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 3:08 PM

The regime has already announced “reforms” in universities that will purge everyone, erase entire faculties, and merge others into obedience. #terrorinGeorgia

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— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 2:54 PM

A 17-year-old was fined 5,000 GEL [≈$1800] for blocking a road. Her mother, Natalie Jghamadze, says she has also received 2 fines. Under GD’s new repressive law, the fine for blocking a road has increased from 500 to 5,000 GEL—targeting protesters with mass penalties.

#TerrorinGeorgia

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— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 1:24 PM

To be clear, the suspended students were also fined GEL 5000, the standard fine – which is MORE THAN DOUBLE THE AMOUNT OF THE ANNUAL TUITION FEE!

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— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 1:30 PM

The EU and all other US allies and partners:

On F-35 fears, I get it – there is real dependency.
But if all your targeting capacity, BLOS comms, penetrating/orbital ISR and the munitions you assume you’d fight with in a war are US-provided; then dependency on the US for MDFs and ALIS/ODIN for F-35 isn’t your main problem.

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— Justin Bronk (@justin-br0nk.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 6:17 AM

The F-35’s capabilities vs Russian air defences also cannot currently be replaced or replicated with other platforms.

For Germany it’s also worth remembering that the F-35 was bought for nuclear DCA role with US supplied B61 Mod 12 so 100% dependent on US whatever the aircraft.

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— Justin Bronk (@justin-br0nk.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 6:17 AM

The US:

When will we hear what russia must do to end the war?

www.nytimes.com/2025/03/10/u…

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— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 3:20 PM

Back to Ukraine.

Here’s last night’s air defense tally:

🇺🇦 Ukrainian Air defence shot down 130/176 UAVs and 42 drones suppressed by EW.

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— MAKS 24 👀🇺🇦 (@maks23.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 3:38 AM

/1. New Ukrainian loitering munition UAS SETH in service with the Azov Brigade

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— 🦋Special Kherson Cat🐈🇺🇦 (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 8:29 AM

/2. New Ukrainian UAS SETH loitering munition.

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— 🦋Special Kherson Cat🐈🇺🇦 (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 8:29 AM

Pilots of the 5th Separate Assault Brigade, after losing drone in the gray zone, decided to go on a raid to retrieve it.

As a result, they returned with two captured Russians, an enemy “Kapushon” electronic warfare system, three enemy Mavic drones, and four enemy FPV drones.

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— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 3:10 PM

🇺🇦The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine plans to purchase 4.5 million Ukrainian-made FPV drones in 2025, allocating over 110 billion UAH (≈$2.67 billion USD) for this procurement.

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— 🦋Special Kherson Cat🐈🇺🇦 (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 7:47 AM

Kharkiv:

Kharkiv this evening. A little while later, russian drones entered our airspace.

📸: інфосіті

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— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 3:33 PM

Vovchansk:

This was once a town called Vovchansk. Russia turned it into ruins. Schools, hospitals, homes—people’s lives—are all gone.

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— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 1:01 PM

Pokrovsk:

“Spartan” prevents the enemy from gaining a foothold in the Pokrovsk direction.

Attempts to advance in small groups are a tactic that Russians use daily in the area of responsibility of the 3rd Operational Brigade “Spartan” in the Pokrovsk direction.

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— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 2:27 PM

Poltava:

This was someone’s home in Poltava until russia blew it up last night

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— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 8:03 AM

Sumy Oblast:

⚡️ Russia attempting to gain foothold in Sumy Oblast, Border Guard warns.

Small Russian assault units are attempting to establish a foothold near Novenke, a Sumy Oblast village near the border with Russia’s Kursk Oblast, the State Border Guard said.

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— The Kyiv Independent (@kyivindependent.com) March 10, 2025 at 7:36 AM

The Kyiv Independent has the details:

Russian forces are attempting to establish a foothold near Novenke, a Ukrainian village in Sumy Oblast near the border with Russia’s Kursk Oblast, State Border Guard spokesperson Andrii Demchenko said on air on March 10.

The news comes after Russia reportedly achieved a breakthrough in Kursk Oblast, seeking to encircle the Ukrainian forces fighting there and penetrate the Ukrainian border.

“These are small assault units, composed of a few people. They try to penetrate our territory, accumulate forces, and advance further into Ukraine, probably to cut off logistical routes,” Demchenko said on national television.

Moscow’s troops have been reportedly trying to push toward Novenke, a village lying 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of the regional center, Sumy, for several weeks.

Ukrainian artillery and drone units continue attacking Russian troops, preventing them from accumulating forces, the spokesperson added.

Concerns about the Ukrainian operation in Kursk Oblast, ongoing since August 2024, have mounted over the weekend amid reports of Russian advances. The development came shortly after the U.S. cut off military and intelligence support for Ukraine, allegedly to push Kyiv to the negotiating table.

A potential loss of the Kursk salient or Russian advances in Sumy Oblast would likely weaken Ukraine’s negotiating position as it prepares for initial rounds of talks with the U.S. in Saudi Arabia.

Russian forces have begun collapsing the northern part of the Ukrainian Kursk salient, while destroyed bridges complicate Ukraine’s ability to withdraw toward the key town of Sudzha, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) think-tank said on March 9.

Moscow has also reportedly deployed North Korean troops in the renewed attack in Kursk Oblast.

The Kursk cross border offensive:

There’s a drone threat and air defence activity in Kursk city this night. As usual, the local lot are absolutely thrilled by the spectacle.

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— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 7:10 PM

⚡️No threat of encirclement for Ukrainian troops in Russia’s Kursk Oblast, Syrskyi says.

Ukrainian units are not currently under threat of encirclement in Russia’s Kursk Oblast, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on March 10.

kyivindependent.com/there-is-cur…

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— The Kyiv Independent (@kyivindependent.com) March 10, 2025 at 12:25 PM

From The Kyiv Independent:

Ukrainian units are not currently under threat of encirclement in Russia’s Kursk Oblast, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on March 10.

Syrskyi’s statement follows reports on Russian and North Korean troops launching an attack on the Ukrainian-held town of Sudzha in Kursk Oblast. Russian forces have made a breakthrough south of the Ukrainian-held town of Sudzha in Kursk Oblast, potentially threatening to cut off some of the Ukrainian positions in the Russian region.

Russian troops have destroyed Ukrainian troops’ logistics in Kursk Oblast, and Ukrainian soldiers face the risk of encirclement, a Ukrainian soldier and a medic deployed in the region told the Kyiv Independent on condition of anonymity on March 7.

“There is currently no threat of encirclement of our units in Kursk Oblast. The units are taking timely measures to maneuver to favorable defense lines,” Syrskyi wrote on Facebook.

Ukrainian forces “control the situation” on the border between Sumy and Kursk oblasts, according to Syrskyi. Yet, several settlements on the border no longer exist, as they have been destroyed by Russian attacks, he added.

Novokuybyshevsk, Samara Oblast, Russia:

🔥👀 Novokuybyshevsk, a massive fire broke out after drones attack. A warehouse is also burning over an area of 1,500 sq. meters.

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— MAKS 24 👀🇺🇦 (@maks23.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 3:42 AM

That’s enough for tonight.

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Open thread!

War for Ukraine Day 1,110: One Dare Calls It TreasonPost + Comments (37)

Monday Evening Open Thread: FAFO, Market Edition

by Anne Laurie|  March 10, 20257:23 pm| 244 Comments

This post is in: C.R.E.A.M., Open Threads, Trump-Musk, Elon Musk

This is what happens when you forget that stupid people are a danger to themselves and everyone around them. >>>
Stock Rout Picks Up Steam With Recession Warnings Blaring
www.bloomberg.com/news/article…

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— The Editorial Board (@editorialboard.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 12:03 PM

What’s the mandated boilerplate? Past performance is no guarantee of future returns?

Markets are plunging bc Trump said we might have a recession. Excellent example of how what happens on Wall St is often stupid. Don’t they have their own analyses? Aren’t Trump/Musk’s actions sufficient? How does Trump essentially shrugging his shoulders make anything different from what it was Fri?

— Dana Houle (@danahoule.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 4:33 PM

This probably explains the “why now” part of my question
bsky.app/profile/pkru…

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— Dana Houle (@danahoule.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 6:33 PM

Market down. Twitter down. Recession talk up.

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— The Tennessee Holler (@thetnholler.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 10:12 AM

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Republicans inherited one of the strongest stock markets in history and in 1 month they've fucked it all up.

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— DCCC (@electdemocrats.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 12:13 PM

*banging fork and knife on table* STONKS STONKS STONKS STONKS

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— Schnorkles O'Bork (@schnorkles.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 3:00 PM

Tesla at 222!

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— Schnorkles O'Bork (@schnorkles.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 3:00 PM

Trump going on Fox News to admit he can't rule out a recession really underscores the dynamic I tried to identify in this piece/thread:

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— Greg Sargent (@gregsargent.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 6:54 AM

He’s Number One!

Welp!
Harris,Biden,Obamas,Clintons and so many others tried to tell you over and over, day after day but NO price of eggs,a trans athlete overt racism and misogyny won. Say that loud and clear. This is not about how we talk to the white working class. This is about honesty.

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— Kriss C. (@krissclemens.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 9:58 AM

Monday Evening Open Thread: FAFO, Market EditionPost + Comments (244)

What Do Politics Have To Do With Me?

by WaterGirl|  March 10, 20252:10 pm| 131 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads

I think it has even more impact in the BlueSky version.

Realize Im new here and have about two friends who even see my posts but if you haven’t heard of this guy @natogreen.bsky.social you must!

He’s brilliant

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— Molly Secours (@mollys.bsky.social) February 20, 2025 at 12:36 PM

Maybe this would be a good time to share far and wide.

This Nato Green seems like a good guy to follow.

Open thread.

What Do Politics Have To Do With Me?Post + Comments (131)

Trump Regime Disappears Student Activist

by Betty Cracker|  March 10, 202510:45 am| 193 Comments

This post is in: Domestic Politics, Foreign Affairs, Open Threads, Politics

It appears free speech at U.S. universities and colleges is kaput, except maybe for “Young Republican” clubs that want to invite Nazis and rapist “influencers” to speak, in which case free speech is sacred and everyone who objects is pro-censorship. From AP:

Immigration agents arrest Palestinian activist who helped lead Columbia University protests

NEW YORK (AP) — Federal immigration authorities arrested a Palestinian activist Saturday who played a prominent role in Columbia University’s protests against Israel, a significant escalation in the Trump administration’s pledge to detain and deport student activists.

Mahmoud Khalil, a graduate student at Columbia until this past December, was inside his university-owned apartment Saturday night when several Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents entered and took him into custody, his attorney, Amy Greer, told The Associated Press.

Greer said she spoke by phone with one of the ICE agents during the arrest, who said they were acting on State Department orders to revoke Khalil’s student visa. Informed by the attorney that Khalil was in the United States as a permanent resident with a green card, the agent said they were revoking that instead, according to the lawyer.

According to the article, Khalil’s wife, an American citizen, was unable to visit him at the nearby facility to which ICE claimed Khalil was being transported. There are rumors that Trump’s brownshirts bundled Khalil off to Louisiana, but who knows.

In a tweet on the (Nazi-infested by order of its owner) X site, Marco Rubio accused Khalil of being a “Hamas supporter.” But if there’s a shred of evidence of that, aside from Khalil’s participation in protests denouncing Israel’s actions in Gaza, I haven’t been able to find it.

This comes on the heels of the Trump regime canceling $400M in grants and contracts with Columbia for failing to “squelch antisemitism on campus,” despite the university’s establishment of a disciplinary committee to investigate students involved in the protests.

Columbia’s predicament underscores the foolishness of trying to appease fascists. They hate educational institutions they don’t control, so they will come for you anyway.

As always with Republicans, there’s a bonus helping of hypocrisy here since Trump hasn’t squelched antisemitism in his own administration. A good start would be for Trump to stop repeating antisemitic garbage himself and firing his lawless, unelected co-president, who famously endorsed the same antisemitic trope that inspired the Tree of Life synagogue mass murderer.

Antisemitism is a huge problem around the world and definitely here in the U.S. The latter point is illustrated by the fact that both co-presidents have trafficked in grotesque antisemitic stereotypes. Antisemites unfortunately exist across the political spectrum, and during the campus protests, the media covered horrifying stories about protesters targeting Jewish students.

I say screw anyone who did that. That sort of behavior should result in serious consequences, including getting kicked out of school for cases where protesters intimidated fellow students and created a climate of fear where students felt unsafe on campus.

But as far as I can tell, there’s no evidence Khalil did anything like that. He was a high-profile campus protest leader, so Trump’s goons disappeared him as a warning to others. Anyone who believes in the First Amendment should be alarmed by that.

Trump Regime Disappears Student ActivistPost + Comments (193)

Monday Morning Open Thread: Budget Crunching the GOP’s Dishonest Continuing Resolution

by Anne Laurie|  March 10, 20256:17 am| 252 Comments

This post is in: C.R.E.A.M., Open Threads, Proud to Be A Democrat, Republican Politics, Trump Crime Cartel

Republicans are determined to shut down the government and crash the economy.
We will not be party to their toxic scheme.

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— Hakeem Jeffries (@hakeem-jeffries.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 9:51 AM

The Hill reports that “Dozens of major conservative activist leaders and organizers are urging conservatives in Congress to support a clean continuing resolution (CR) to avert a government shutdown in a memo organized by the Conservative Action Project”, which is a pretty good indicator Rep. Jeffries and his fellows are correct that it’s a very bad offer.

Per the Washington Post, house news for the town whose monopoly industry is politics, “Republicans unveil another extension to try to avert government shutdown” [gift link]:

With less than a week to go before a March 14 shutdown deadline, President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) are pushing a bill that would extend current funding levels until the end of the fiscal year in late September.

The measure unveiled Saturday, known as a continuing resolution, or CR, would stave off a politically costly shutdown if it passes.

But it would also mean that Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress and the White House, would largely keep funding set by President Joe Biden last year, rather than allow the appropriations committees to set new spending levels — hardly the win they were hoping for.

It is also not guaranteed to pass the narrowly divided House, where Republicans have a 218-214 majority and have had to rely on Democrats to pass previous funding measures to keep the government open. As it is, House Republicans can afford to lose only a single vote if all lawmakers are present. [see below]

The House Republican plan trims spending from the 2024 fiscal year by $13 billion in nondefense spending. It would increase funding for veteran health care and defense in an attempt to assuage defense hawks. And it includes more flexibility for the White House to direct funding, according to House GOP leadership aides, including a request by the administration for more money to support Immigration and Customs Enforcement…

The bill does not include disaster relief for fires in California earlier this year or funds that legislators take back to their districts for community projects. It also does not raise the debt limit, which Congress must address in the coming months.

By bypassing the yearly appropriations process, Congress would cede some of its power to dictate how money is spent — which is exercised through that process with more specificity — and give the Trump administration more leeway over federal spending. Democrats argue that a continuing resolution would make it easier for Elon Musk, who oversees the U.S. DOGE Service, to drastically slash the size of government because it continues current funding levels without as much specificity about how the money should be spent…

As a possible government shutdown looms this week, Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) says he hasn't decided his vote on a continuing resolution to avoid the shutdown, and Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) says "right now, I'm a no," because "there's been no outreach on a bipartisan basis." pic.twitter.com/I6IFOxRJzp

— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) March 9, 2025

show full post on front page

.@AOC: "They're saying cut $880 billion from the Energy & Commerce Committee. I sit on that committee. Almost the entire budget that Energy & Commerce explores is Medicaid and Medicare. There is no way that they can make their math square without enormous and devastating cuts to… pic.twitter.com/nuzwmYfY6F

— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) March 8, 2025

House Republicans just published the text of their continuing resolution. 99 pages.
docs.house.gov/meetings/RU/…

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— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur.bsky.social) March 8, 2025 at 1:08 PM

If it were that easy / generous, the Oval Office Occupant wouldn’t be sending out ‘PLEASE‘ plaints already. SAD!:

I held this post up to the light.

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— Ivan the K ™?? (@ivanthek.bsky.social) March 8, 2025 at 1:51 PM

When I think of budding dictators about to institute thousand year reichs, I think of a man who has to ask his own party to pretty pretty please not shut down the government and humiliate themselves.

— Schnorkles O'Bork (@schnorkles.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 12:04 AM

Hate to get into an Appropriations nomenclature argument, but straight up, the Republican "continuing resolution" is not a "continuing resolution."

This looks a lot more like a partisan omnibus.https://t.co/xhzYjZE0L4

— Matt Fuller (@MEPFuller) March 8, 2025

GOP funding patch boosts defense and deportations, cuts other programs…
It's doubtful that Democrats would support this Continuing Resolution (CR)…
https://www.yahoo.com/news/gop-funding-patch-boosts-defense-172021485.html

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— Fighting Liberal Texas Dem🌈🌊💙🦋Congress Switchboard 202-224-3121 (@fightingliberal.bsky.social) March 8, 2025 at 2:46 PM

TELL THE TRUTH.
The Republicans’ proposed continuing resolution to avert a government shutdown has a bunch of poison pills.
Example:
It zeroes out the Toxic Exposures Fund to care for veterans exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxic substances.
Heartless MONSTERS who HATE our vets.

— Nick Knudsen (@nickknudsenus.bsky.social) March 8, 2025 at 3:10 PM

Punchbowl‘s Jake Sherman is very much in favor, which IMO is a clear indicator that it’s bad for Democrats and for the country…

A “clean continuing resolution” is an unchanged continuation of previous spending levels. Republicans are increasing spending on things they like (defense) and cutting it on things they don’t, while Trump is refuses to abide by enacted funding levels. None of that is a clean CR

— Aaron Fritschner (@Fritschner) March 8, 2025

My beloved senior Senator has a counter-offer: Four weeks. If you can’t get your sh*t together in a month…

“We need a short-term continuing resolution, maybe four weeks, in order to finish the budgeting process and get that done,” Warren told Semafor’s @burgessev.bsky.social.

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— Semafor (@semafor.com) March 6, 2025 at 11:36 AM

Remember ‘they can only afford to lose one Republican vote’? GOP Rep. ‘Sand in Every Gear’ Massie has already put down his marker:

I’m not voting for the Continuing Resolution budget (cut-copy-paste omnibus) this week. Why would I vote to continue the waste fraud and abuse DOGE has found?

We were told the CR in December would get us to March when we would fight.

Here we are in March, punting again!

WTFO

— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) March 10, 2025

Monday Morning Open Thread: Budget Crunching the GOP’s Dishonest Continuing ResolutionPost + Comments (252)

War for Ukraine Day 1,109: Trump’s Goals for Ukraine Are a Full Shakedown & Bustout

by Adam L Silverman|  March 9, 202510:32 pm| 37 Comments

This post is in: Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, Military, Open Threads, Russia, Silverman on Security, War, War in Ukraine

A spoof book cover. It has a bunny standing on it's hind legs, wearing a yellow rain coat, and holding a closed red umbrella in its right hand. It is facing slightly to the left and it's left hand is raised and pointing to the spook title, which reads: "Oh Christ. It's THIS ASSHOLE AGAIN."

Almost all of eastern and central Ukraine is under air raid alert at 9:15 PM EDT/3:15 AM local time in Ukraine.

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— Stephen Collins (@stephencollins.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 5:15 AM

I started last night post’s with this assessment of Trump’s objectives regarding Ukraine.

To answer to Ambassador Sepp’s question the “justification for this,” as well as the bottom line reality of what Rolling Stone has reported that Trump is trying to do, is to force Ukraine to give up its defense against Putin’s/Russia’s genocidal re-invasion, force Zelenskyy from office so Putin can install a puppet replacement, all so Trump can do business with Putin. It would also mean that despite withstanding Putin’s and Russia’s genocidal re-invasion for the past three years, and the more limited one for almost eleven years, that Ukraine as Ukraine would functionally cease to exist. There might be a rump statelet in what is now western and part of central Ukraine, but that would still be under Putin’s and Russia’s control. eastern and much of central Ukraine would be directly under Russia’s thumb. And the US will simply take whatever wealth Ukraine has in the ground for itself as profit all while functionally indenturing Ukrainians. Thats what this and all related Trump admin efforts are.

I understand that President Zelenskyy has no choice but to go through the motions right now, but I do not see how he or any other potential Ukrainian president, Zaluzhnyi for instance, could sign onto what Trump is demanding. Only someone willing to be Putin’s puppet and Trump’s useful idiot would.

NBC News now brings us more clarity as to what Trump expects:

WASHINGTON — As U.S. and Ukrainian officials prepare to meet in Saudi Arabia this week, President Donald Trump has privately made clear to aides that a signed minerals deal between Washington and Kyiv won’t be enough to restart aid and intelligence sharing with the war-torn country, according an administration official and another U.S. official.

Trump wants the deal, which would give the U.S. a stake in Ukraine’s mineral resources, signed. But he also wants to see a change in Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s attitude toward peace talks, the officials said, including a willingness to make concessions such as giving up territory to Russia. Trump also wants Zelenskyy to make some movement toward elections in Ukraine and possibly toward stepping down as his country’s leader, the officials said.

Elections in Ukraine have been paused under the country’s constitutional provision for martial law, which has been in effect since Russia invaded in 2022.

Given that Putin has made it clear he’s not stopping and the reality that none of what Trump wants is acceptable to Ukrainians, I don’t see how this is going to play out in a positive manner for Trump. It is important to remember that President Zelenskyy has already called Trump’s bluff. He has already stated that he’d be willing to step down if it meant proper security guarantees and NATO membership for Ukraine. The demand that he step down is being made by Trump, who refused to accept that he lost the 2020 election. This is the difference between being all class and being like school in the summertime: no class.

It is also important to remember that Trump and his surrogates view of the dispute is that only Ukraine has agency. The war could end immediately if Putin abandon’s his genocidal re-invasion and just redeploys his forces back to Russia. Putin won’t do this because his intention is, as it has always been, to take and hold Ukraine because he believes that Ukraine belongs to him and Russia, not to the Ukrainians.

Now we wait.

What we can see happening is Trump’s behavior towards Ukraine setting the condition to seriously harm the US defense sector.

‘Sir Ben Wallace, former UK defence secretary, said that, if he were still in post, his first response would have been to commission “an appraisal of our dependencies and vulnerabilities across international partners — including the US”…’ www.ft.com/content/1503…

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— Shashank Joshi (@shashj.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 5:47 AM

From The Financial Times:

With the US cutting off military support to Ukraine in an abrupt pivot towards Russia, many European governments are feeling buyers’ remorse for decades of US arms purchases that have left them dependent on Washington for the continued functioning of their weaponry.

“If they see how Trump is dealing with [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelenskyy, they should be worried. He is throwing him under the bus,” said Mikael Grev, a former Gripen fighter pilot and now chief executive of Avioniq, a Swedish defence AI company. “The Nordic and Baltic states need to think: will he do the same to us?”

Such is the concern that debate has turned to whether the US maintains secret so-called kill switches that would immobilise aircraft and weapons systems. While never proven, Richard Aboulafia, managing director at consultancy AeroDynamic Advisory, said: “If you postulate the existence of something that can be done with a little bit of software code, it exists.”

In practice, it may not even matter because of how already reliant advanced combat aircraft and other sophisticated weapons — such as anti-missile systems, advanced drones and early warning aircraft — are on US spare parts and software updates.

“It is not as simple as a kill switch,” said Justin Bronk, senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute (Rusi). “Most European militaries depend heavily on the US for communications support, for electronic warfare support, and for ammunition resupply in any serious conflict.

”Europe’s reliance on the US, meanwhile, has been rising, with America accounting for 55 per cent of Europe’s defence equipment imports between 2019 and 2023 — up from 35 per cent in the previous five years, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Sir Ben Wallace, former UK defence secretary, said that, if he were still in post, his first response would have been to commission “an appraisal of our dependencies and vulnerabilities across international partners — including the US”. This would allow reflection “on whether there needs to be any strategic changes”.

Trump has repeatedly stated his intent to buy — or take over — Greenland, an autonomous territory within the kingdom of Denmark. Citing the Arctic’s strategic importance, Danish ministers have signalled they will try to reinforce the island — potentially by expanding an airport runway to accommodate US-bought F-35 fighters.

But, for this one particular mission, those jets may well be next to useless. “What’s the point of Denmark sending F-35s to protect Greenland?” asked Sash Tusa, an aerospace and defence analyst, pointing to the uncertainty of whether the F-35s would fly — if the US did not want them to.

The plane relies on continuous updates and maintenance support from the US through its Autonomic Logistics Information System — which is to be replaced by a successor programme known as Odin, the Operational Data Integrated Network. The systems manage everything from mission planning and threat databases to maintenance diagnostics.“

The problem with really sophisticated defence equipment is that [it needs] so much support from the vendor, that if the vendor decides to stop supporting [it], the equipment stops working, if not instantaneously then very, very quickly,” said Tusa.

“The question they will be thinking is ‘how do you add US-proofing into your defence structure?’” More than half of Europe’s advanced combat aircraft — mainly the F-35 and the F-16 — are bought from the US.

Even before the Trump era, in the early stages of the F-35 programme, the UK — a top buyer that makes many parts for the plane — asked for guarantees of “operational sovereignty”. Some assurances were given in 2006, but no US ally has Washington’s level of access to the source code for the system.

Much more at the link.

Right now the US’s soon to be former allies and partners are wondering if their F-35s, as well as other US made weapons systems and munitions, can be bricked on a whim by Trump or Musk. Especially given what Musk got up to today.

I hope my friends in Poland have no illusions about this administration. No matter how much you praise them or speak kindly, they will still attack you the moment you have even the slightest disagreement.

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— Tatarigami (@tatarigami.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 12:28 PM

Because I suspect this is going to get lost in the flood of everyone paying attention to Elon, here is the current, Russia-supporting Secretary Of The United States admitting outright that he understands Russia likely has plans on invading other European nations.

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— Schrödinger’s Sneetch Belly (@rtodkelly.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 2:18 PM

First, I believe Musk challenged Putin to a fight when an independent source can provide vetted and verified confirmation. Second, Foreign Minister Sikorski is a tall man and he appears to be in good shape. Musk looks like ambulatory semi-melted ice cream. Third, Musk, like Trump, does not believe that Putin and Russia have any agency, just President Zelenskyy and Ukraine. Fourth, Poland spends just a little more than 4% of its GDP on defense.

It seems like someone is trying to rehabilitate themselves after spouting nonsense while still maintaining their position and refusing to back down from their words.

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— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 1:13 PM

I can count at least a half a dozen time that Musk has threatened to turn off Ukraine’s Starlink access regardless of who is paying. I also know, because I included it in updates when it happened, that he geofenced/caged Ukrainian Starlinks so they couldn’t be used in counter-Russian operations in Crimea. He’s a lying, delusional, megalomaniacal junkie.

Also, Vance’s accusation that he and his three year old were chased and threatened by pro-Ukrainian protestors yesterday was just as much bullshit as his fictional family history.

Can’t help but get emotional every time Georgia is mentioned alongside Ukraine in Russian crimes, because we come from a place of such a betrayed oblivion. And Chechnya even more so.

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— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 5:02 PM

More on the man of a thousand names in a bit.

Here is President Zelenskyy’s address from earlier today. Video below, English transcript after the jump.

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Diplomacy Will Only Be Strong with Strong Frontline Positions – Address by the President

9 March 2025 – 22:18

I wish you health, fellow Ukrainians!

A few points from today. Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi’s report – the frontline, the main directions in the Donetsk region, and the Kursk operation. I want to thank all our units who, steadfastly and despite everything, are destroying the occupier, repelling assaults, and defending our positions. Diplomacy will only be strong with strong frontline positions. And we are doing everything to ensure that Ukraine’s frontline needs are met. Ukraine’s Defense Minister Umerov reported on his contacts and meetings with our partners on new support packages. Poland is preparing support packages and continues its participation in the “Czech initiative” for ammunition. Germany – we expect an expedited delivery of IRIS-T air defense systems and ammunition for them. It is extremely important that Germany understands its role as one of the greatest security pillars of Europe and the modern free world. We deeply appreciate this. The European Union – we are working at the level of EU institutions to cover existing supply shortages. The Netherlands – there is readiness to continue investing in weapons production in Ukraine. The Nordic and Baltic states – there is full support, and this means new packages, new investments in weapons production, new political initiatives that will strengthen us all – both Ukraine and Europe. I would like to thank all partners. Tomorrow, we will continue working to bring peace closer – there will be my visit to Saudi Arabia. Also, today, the meeting of our teams – Ukraine and the United States – in Saudi Arabia has been further prepared. We hope for results – both in bringing peace closer and in continuing support.

And one more thing. All week long – just like every week after the shelling, after Russian strikes – our rescuers are always there, always helping our people. And we are always grateful to them – all the personnel of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine. Today, I especially want to recognize our rescuers working in the Donetsk region, particularly those who assisted our people in Dobropillya – Dmytro Aharkov, Artem Bernada, Yevhenii Osadchyi, Dmytro Litovchenko, Oleksandr Masliuk – thank you, guys! Also, Andrii Zemlianyi, Serhii Konov, Denys Sukhanov, Volodymyr Allik, Serhii Usov, and the entire State Emergency Service team in the Donetsk region. And in the Kharkiv region – Oleksii Makushenko, Kyrylo Shvachka, Andrii Oliinyk, Oleksandr Rabcheniuk, Maksym Adamovych, Roman Veretelnyk, Andrii Valuiev, Pavlo Sarancha, Andrii Tur, and Yurii Denchyk. Thank you so much! Thank you to everyone working for Ukraine and Ukrainians! Thank you to all our Ukrainian warriors!

Glory to Ukraine!

Today is Taras Shevchenko’s birthday. Good reason to reshare this.

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— Maria Avdeeva (@mariainkharkiv.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 8:45 AM

President Zelenskyy also made remarks at the ceremony to award the Shevchenko prize laureates.

Georgia:

Day 102. Protesters list names of regime prisoners and chant “freedom” after each name.
There will be no resolution to this deepening crisis without new, free and fair elections.
All our friends should stress this. #GeorgiaProtests

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— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 4:13 PM

1/ Students at the Theatre and Film University have been protesting against the GD regime for months without stopping. Today, March 9, police visited them three times.

#TerrorinGeorgia

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— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 9:58 AM

2/ During the second visit, they fined the students 5,000 GEL each. According to the repressive GD law, protests cannot be held in a closed space without permission. The rector and lecturers did nothing to support them.

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— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 9:58 AM

3/ During the third visit, police demanded that the students to leave the building. They decided to comply. According to lawyer Guja Avsajanishvili, there was a threat of their arrest. The students will continue their protest in a different form.

— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 9:58 AM

Businessman Giorgi Chikvaidze who defected from the dictator reports 36 cases of surveillance on him just today, which involved 37 cars & 64 persons.
👇🏻A notable incident of a man running, exposed, and throwing a yogurt after Chikvaidze chased: “Did you just steal a yogurt?” 🍿

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— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 3:20 PM

Lithuania:

Here is former Foreign Minister Lansbergis’s assessment of Trump’s peace plan for Ukraine:

The Trump-Putin Pact already exists, and we should act accordingly. There are some things we will never change with nice words or smart clothing. If you are worried about those things, you should understand where Trump’s tactics come from. From Russia.
A thread. 🧵1/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

The fact that military assistance to Ukraine might have been cut before Zelensky’s meeting with Trump in the Oval Office—and only later reconnected—should serve as an example of the current mindset in Washington.🧵2/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

Trump is seeking alignment with Putin. Putin has asked for concessions, and concessions have been promised. We may not know the full extent of those promises, but we must be prepared for all of it.🧵3/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

Ukraine’s sovereignty, military support, security guarantees and political future could have already been handed over in exchange for the alignment with Russia that Trump is pursuing.🧵4/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

But since openly selling out like that to Putin looks politically unpalatable, the administration will use any means necessary to cover its tracks.🧵5/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

As someone who grew up in 1990s Lithuania, I remember all too well how older kids from the nearby Russian school would wait for us on our way to class. If they had decided to beat you up, they would find a reason. Whatever you did, they would make it happen.🧵6/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

It reminds me of an old Russian prison joke. A man asks another for a cigarette. The other says he doesn’t have one. “Do you have a light?”—“No, I don’t smoke.” The first man sighs, then punches him. “Why?” the beaten man asks. “Because you’re not wearing a hat.”🧵7/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

That’s how it worked in the streets too. If you had a cigarette, they took it. If you had money, they took it. If you gave them nothing, they hit you just because. There was no right answer, because it was never about cigarettes, or money, or hats. It was about power.🧵8/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

And if you wanted to survive, you had to act accordingly. If you could fight, you fought. If you couldn’t fight, you avoided their territory. If you couldn’t avoid it, you made sure you weren’t alone.🧵9/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

What you didn’t do was think that carrying a hat, cigarettes, or money would save you. That was the mistake of those who didn’t understand the rules—they gave up everything and still got beaten. Because the Russian thug stops only when challenged.🧵10/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

And the same logic plays out not just on the streets, but in geopolitics.
–“Sign this deal on your minerals.”
–“Ok.”
–“Well… then we’ll punch you because you didn’t wear a suit.”
It’s not about the minerals, or the elections, or any of it.
It’s about submission. 🧵11/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

That was true in 1939, when the Soviet Union signed a Mutual Assistance Pact with Lithuania and stationed 20,000 troops in our country. A year later, the Soviets said there was an “incident” involving some Soviet soldiers. This was used as the pretext for an ultimatum.🧵12/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

The Soviets demanded the resignation of Lithuania’s government within 48 hours or surrender to occupation. But at the time the Foreign Minister received this ultimatum, a Soviet invasion force was already marching towards our border. The occupation was a fait accompli.🧵13/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

We didn’t know then that it had all been agreed in advance in the secret Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact.
Today, we have no excuse for such naivety. It’s a safe bet that the Trump-Putin Pact already exists—and we should act accordingly.🧵14/14

— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

For regular analysis subscribe to my newsletter here:
landsbergis.com/the-trump-pu…

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— Gabrielius Landsbergis (@glandsbergis.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 12:07 PM

Romania:

The Central Electoral Bureau of Romania has disqualified pro-Russian candidate Călin Georgescu from the elections, citing his anti-democratic stance, following complaints, as reported by Bloomberg. Violent unrest erupted in the capital, with Georgescu’s supporters clashing with police forces.

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— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 2:23 PM

The US:

Ukraine seeks to persuade US to resume aid in high-stakes talks

https://www.ft.com/content/842692b9-ffa3-422d-9343-0d7cd0b2392d

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— Financial Times (@financialtimes.com) March 9, 2025 at 3:42 PM

From The Financial Times: (emphasis mine)

Ukraine will try to persuade the US to resume intelligence and military support in high-stakes bilateral talks this week by convincing Donald Trump that Volodymyr Zelenskyy wants a swift end to the war with Russia.

Officials briefed on preparations for the negotiations in Saudi Arabia said Kyiv was set to propose a partial ceasefire with Russia for long-range drone and missile strikes and combat operations in the Black Sea, in the hope that the talks’ progress would lead Washington to reverse its decision to freeze intelligence sharing and weaponry supplies.

Ukrainian negotiators are travelling to Saudi Arabia on Monday after the first days without US support led to the country’s troops giving up Russian territory they seized last year in the Kursk region.

One Ukrainian official added that Kyiv would in the short-term prioritise fixing its ties with the US, while two European officials said Kyiv saw progress in the ceasefire talks as a quid pro quo for restarting military and intelligence aid.

“The goal of any negotiations between Ukrainian and US authorities in Saudi Arabia will be, in particular, to agree on a resumption of assistance,” Fedir Venislavskiy, a Ukrainian MP from Zelenskyy’s party and a member of parliament’s national security committee, said late last week.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio will be in the Saudi city of Jeddah from Monday to Wednesday for the talks, with a brief to “advance the president’s goal to end the Russia-Ukraine war”, a spokesperson said.

In comments on Fox News on Sunday, Trump did not mention the bilateral talks directly but said he was confident that a “valuable” minerals deal would be signed with Kyiv soon.

He rejected criticism that he had been comparatively soft towards Moscow, which he threatened with sanctions last week after suspending the aid to Ukraine. “Nobody has been tougher on Russia than Donald Trump,” he said.

The US pressure on Kyiv has forced Zelenskyy’s administration to shift its position after a disastrous meeting on February 28 at the White House.

“The tactics have changed,” said Volodymyr Fesenko, a political analyst based in Kyiv. “Now the most important [thing] is to normalise the relations with the US and, if before the plan was to get security guarantees first and then push for a ceasefire, it’s now obvious it won’t happen in that order.”

He added: “Trump says that Ukraine doesn’t want a ceasefire, so the goal for us is to show the US that we’re ready to act as quickly as possible, and to start direct negotiations with Russia.”

Zelenskyy told EU leaders in Brussels on Thursday he wanted to strike a general framework agreement with the US that would pave the way for further, more detailed agreements on mineral resources and security guarantees.

The broader deal would start with a cessation of aerial attacks, operations at sea and strikes on energy and other civilian infrastructure.

It would continue with prisoner exchanges and the return of Ukrainian children abducted by the Russian authorities, measures intended to build confidence between the two sides.

More at the link.

The simple fact is that Putin is not going to agree to an actual short term truce. Thanks to Trump’s actions, Putin thinks he has the advantage now and he’s going to keep pressing it. He may agree to a truce, but he won’t honor it.

And, quite frankly, there’s no good faith negotiating with Trump:

“He took money out of this country under Biden, like candy from a baby…” – Trump on Zelenskyy and U.S. support for Ukraine

This is genuinely scary. How long before every Republican in the U.S. stops questioning anything and begins actively wishing harm upon us?

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— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 11:40 AM


Apparently, JD Vance’s first cousin has been a volunteer fighting for Ukraine for several years. He gave an interview to France’s Le Figaro. Here’s a machine translated excerpt.

When Nate heard it his cousin JD Vance s’en take to Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office of the White House, he entered a black anger. In his motorhome, lost on the roads of the American west he has been crisscrossing since his return from’Ukraine in January 2025, Nate was disappointed. Disappointed with this cousin, a few years his younger – Nate is 47 years old – of which he’ never stopped defending the integrity. « JD is a good, smart guy explains. When he criticised l’aid to’Ukraine , I told myself that it’ was because he had to please a certain electorate, that it’ was the game of politics. But what’s they did to Zelensky (with Donald Trump, NDLR) it’was an ambush of’an absolute bad faith », he fumes.

« Being in your family doesn’t mean that I’m going to agree to see you kill my comrades », plague Nate Vance. With method, the soldier responds to the arguments of his cousin, emphasizes the benefits that the United States derived from their involvement in the war, the proper use of American equipment on the front.. I was disappointed. When JD justifies his distrust of Zelensky by the “reports” that he has seen, I thought I was going to strangle myself, he complains indignantly. His own cousin was on the front line. I could have told him the truth, without pretense, without personal interest. He NEVER’a sought to learn more », he sighs. Yet Nate tried several times to make contact with his cousin. « From’Ukraine, reaching a senator is not simple », he admits. « But I left messages at his desk. I NEVER have had news », laments the soldier.

More at the link.

And here’s the video of an interview he did that touches on the same topics:

 

Back to Ukraine:

Ukrainians yearn for lasting peace, a concept seemingly beyond Elon’s grasp.

What he proposes, however, is sweeping this war under the rug for a few years, offering no real security guarantees for Ukraine. This approach would allow russia to regroup and rebuild. 1/4.🧵

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— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 10:26 AM

Without the assurance of lasting peace, the vital investments Ukraine desperately needs will never materialize. Stripped of infrastructure, jobs, and hope, a significant portion of our war-weary population, seeing the inevitability of another conflict, would likely emigrate.

2/4.

— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 10:26 AM

Russia, having learned from its earlier missteps, wouldn’t repeat the folly of invading with a 200,000 soldiers with parade uniforms in their backpacks. Instead, they’d return with a much stronger force to finish the job of swallowing our country whole, murdering

3/4.

— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 10:26 AM

activists, journalists, police, military, and veterans, and leaving behind only mass graves and puppets.

We want peace. But it must be a peace that ensures our survival, not one that leads to our annihilation.

4/4 🔚

— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 10:26 AM

In February, frontline clashes fell by 36%. Pokrovske (1042 clashes, 33.91%) and Kursk (444 clashes, 14.45%) remain the hottest zones. Eastern pressure holds, yet overall activity is waning.

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— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 9:00 AM

💥Spectacular detonation of the Russian Pantsir-S1 air defence system filmed by Russians. t.me/ButusovPlus/…

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— 🦋Special Kherson Cat🐈🇺🇦 (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 7:53 AM

The 44th Artillery Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces targeted Russian howitzers with both MLRS and field artillery. The Russians’ open position made the strike easier, as guns in cover are usually harder to hit.

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— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 1:50 PM

🇺🇦🦾 Despite the somewhat disappointing news in the media in recent days, the 6th Special Forces Battalion of the 12th Special Forces Brigade “Azov” continues to tirelessly fulfill its tasks of destroying enemy manpower and equipment! 🔥

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— Vitalis Viva (@vitalisviva.bsky.social) March 7, 2025 at 9:05 AM

Ukraine’s Defense Forces have destroyed the Russian Tor surface-to-air missile system, designed for air and missile defense at the division level. Exclusive video and photo evidence showcase the successful operation.

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— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 7:56 AM

Kharkiv:

Kharkiv’s Taras Shevchenko monument remains shielded by sandbags and plastic to protect it from russian bombings. Yet, for the great writer’s birthday, the city decorated it nonetheless.

I miss our Taras deeply and can’t wait for the day I can see him again.

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— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 11:48 AM

The Russian occupied portion of the Black Sea:

Russians published a video that allegedly shows a Ukrainian naval drone launching a smaller naval drone to strike a gas platform in the Black Sea that Russians have captured.

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— 🦋Special Kherson Cat🐈🇺🇦 (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 6:16 AM

The non-Russian occupied portion of the Black Sea:

Combat group NORD Karjalan ryhmä, fighting for Ukraine with the RDK, shared a photo from the “Crimea-2” platform with an M2 Browning .50 HMG. “Crimea-2” is a Black Sea drilling rig recaptured by Ukraine’s Armed Forces from Russia in 2023.

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— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 11:49 AM

Sudzha, Kursk Oblast, Russia:

Check out the latest from the ‘Russian gas service’ on combat duty! They sent the whole squad to unclog the Sudzha pipes – but the Ukrainian Armed Forces upgraded the service with cluster ‘plumbers,’ and now it’s less gas, more blast!

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— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 4:07 AM

Cheboksary, Russia:

Tonight, Ukrainian drones attacked the Novolipetsk Metallurgical Plant and the Burevestnik oil refinery in Cheboksary, Russia. Explosions were also heard in Korenevo in the Kursk region, near a distillery in the Voronezh region, at a refinery in Kstovo, and in Ryazan.

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— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 9, 2025 at 6:41 AM

That’s enough for tonight.

Your daily Patron!

There are no new Patron skeets or videos today.

Here is some adjacent material:

The cats got his back.

#MenWithCats

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— Greg Morosoff (@gregmorosoff.bsky.social) March 6, 2025 at 5:50 PM

Open thread!

War for Ukraine Day 1,109: Trump’s Goals for Ukraine Are a Full Shakedown & BustoutPost + Comments (37)

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