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Instead of waging a new Cold War expending billions in a new arms race, Vladimir Putin has adapted a new tactic by waging a cyber war against the U.S. and the Western democracies by using our own social media and institutions against us.
Given the Mueller report and the unanimous conclusions of all of our intelligence agencies, Russia hacked the DNC and interfered with our 2016 elections.
President Trump, in his own words, attempted to squeeze the new Ukrainian president into investigating the Bidens for domestic political gain. This was reaffirmed with impeachment testimony given by various witnesses under oath.
Like many Americans, I found the testimony compelling. Yet in lock step the Trump GOP, to a person, did not address the substance of the witnesses' testimony. Instead they assailed, and tried to smear the character and motives of the witnesses.
What was a surprise was the reassertion of a discredited White House narrative: It wasn't the Russians who interfered with the 2016 election. It was the Ukrainians.
Notwithstanding the findings of our Intelligence community or the Mueller report, Vladimir Putin has pulled off an incredible feat. He has managed to control or at a minimum strongly influence an American president and through him control a major U.S. political party to advance his agenda.
And what is that agenda? To further divide and weaken the United States, influence another American election and to lift the U.S. imposed sanctions against Russia.
Put another way Putin is using us against us.
Fred Arenas
Arlington Heights