Weekly Opinion Editorial
SAUSAGE MAKING!
by Steve Fair
Ukrainian
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is a former entertainer. He played the part of the president in a
popular Ukrainian TV show titled, “Servant of the People.’ He was elected by a landslide in 2019 after
helping create the political Party title the same as his TV show- Servant of
the People. Zelenskyy’s presidential campaign
was unconventional. He used social
media, stand-up comedy, and a YouTube channel to reach voters. His message was anti-establishment and
anti-corruption. His campaign tag line
was: “Bringing professional, decent people to power.” He had little policy experience and had not
sought public office before.
This week, Zelenskyy
visited the White House with the stated purpose to negotiate an end to the
three-year war with Russia. It didn’t go
well. Zelenskyy and President Trump got
into a very public dispute. Tempers
flared and Zelenskyy was asked to leave the White House. Reactions in the U.S. and around the world
varied. Three observations:
First,
Russia is America’s sworn enemy. In the
aftermath of WWI, the Soviet Union was formed as a Communist/Marxism form of
government. The U.S. opposed the
Bolshevik Revolution in 1917 and its ideology and the Communist leaders who
came to power never forgot it. Even
though Russia and the U.S. fought together as allies against Nazi Germany,
tensions persisted throughout WWII. Following
WWII, the Cold War began. It was a
period of competition and confrontation between the U.S. and Russia, marked by
espionage, wars over the spread of communism and the build-up of nuclear
arms. President Reagan’s ‘peace through
strength’ strategy resulted in the eventual economic collapse and breakup of
the old Soviet Union. But leadership in
Russia has remained steadfast in their goal of destroying America’s capitalism
economic system and reuniting the old Soviet Union. No matter how friendly they appear, Russia
remains America’s sworn enemy.
Second, the Ukrainian government is corrupt. Corruption goes back to the dissolution of
the Soviet Union in 1991. Politicians,
organized crime and oligarchs seized the country’s vast natural resources as
their own. The U.S. State Department described
Ukraine government as a Kleptocracy or Thievocracy- a government whose leaders
use their power to steal the wealth of their people.
Make no mistake- bribery, graft, and payola are alive
and well in Ukraine.
Zelenskyy is
not a noble champion of democracy, but unfortunately his acceptance as a champion
of freedom and justice is bipartisan. Democrats
and Republicans alike are big fans of the smooth talker. But since the war started with Russia,
Zelenskyy has outlawed eleven opposition political Parties and invoked martial
law. He is ruling in his country as an
unelected dictator.
An audit a
year ago by Zelenskyy’s own defense secretary found $262 million dollars of fraud
and kickbacks by members of the military and parliament. Most of that money came from American taxpayers. President Trump puts the amount of aid at
$350 billion thus far- other sources claim it is ‘only’ $182 billion. But whatever the number, the United States
has sent more money to Ukraine than it cost to fight the Vietnam war.
Third, Russia
needs Ukraine’s resources. That is Putin’s
motivation and the primary reason he invaded Ukraine. He needs their agricultural production to
feed the Russian people. Russia needs
their natural gas, oil, and minerals. He
grew weary of trying to negotiate and decided he would simply take it. Diplomacy almost always works when all sides
seek a workable solution, but when talks broke down, Putin deployed
troops.
The
Russians and the Ukrainians share a language, a religion, and history, but it
been far from brotherly. Ukraine and
Russia both trace their origins to Kyivan Rus’, an early medieval state formed
in the ninth century. Lenin had to fight
a very strong Ukrainian national movement during a civil war waged from
1917-1921 to keep Ukraine in the Soviet Union.
Many Ukrainians believe Putin wants to eliminate their right to exist
and identify as a separate people.
Last week, Americans saw how the sausage is made. The practical and often unpleasant, messy aspects of a process usually not made public were on display. Some Americans were appalled/embarrassed/ashamed by President Trump and Vice President Vance’s behavior toward Zelenskyy and his being asked to leave the White House. Zelenskyy played the victim because his goal is to get more of American taxpayer dollars. This week, Americans learned that sausage making is not a spectator sport.
