In Russian, the name Ron Johnson, the GOP senator from Wisconsin, is “Ron Johnson.”
How much more evidence is needed to impeach Johnson as a Russia spy?
This is more evidence than the GOP has in its case to impeach President Joe Biden.
This is more evidence that the GOP in its argument that Donald Trump won the 2020 Presidential Election; more evidence than the GOP has in its argument that there was no insurrection on January 6, 2021; and as much evidence that Bigfoot is an Elvis impersonator in Las Vegas.
Few Americans have done more to serve the interests of Russia than Ron Johnson – that is, with the exception of Donald Trump whose head is so far up Putin’s butt that any time the Russian president becomes flatulent it runs the risk of causing the former president additional brain damage.
SEE VLADIMIR PUTIN,
Trump has repeatedly questioned whether Russia interfered in the 2016 Presidential Election. In doing so, he ignores the conclusions of “U.S. intelligence agencies that the Kremlin carried out a sweeping influence operation and propaganda campaign,” NPR said.
In addition, Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 election concluded that Russian interfered in a number of ways, including hacking Democrats’ emails and using social media to influence U.S. voters.
https://www.justice.gov/archives/sco/file/1373816/download
While Trump “has continued to press for good relations with Russia,” CNN reported, “Congress and the rest of the administration have pursued efforts to punish the Kremlin.”
https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/06/politics/russia-sanctions-oligarchs/index.html
The Trump administration issued sanctions in April 2018 against dozens of Russian officials, including Putin’s closest advisers, in response to the country’s meddling in U.S. elections, cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure, and the Kremlin’s military aggression in Crimea, Ukraine, and Syria.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-targets-russian-oligarchs-in-new-sanctions-1523018826
https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/06/politics/russia-sanctions-oligarchs/index.html
Ron Johnson traveled to Russia in 2018 with other GOP senators to confront the country about its interference in the 2016 election.
John Kennedy of Louisiana said his message to Russia was to “stop screwing with our elections.”
Jerry Moran of Kansas was less blunt but equally clear in his message to Russia.
“The point of the visit was to indicate a willingness to begin dialogue. I think the interest in many of us, particularly as a Republican delegation,” he told NPR. “My view is that for Russians to hear that Republicans from the United States Senate believe that meddling occurred, that it needs to stop.”
https://rollcall.com/2018/07/09/after-moscow-trip-ron-johnson-says-election-meddling-overblown/
https://www.npr.org/2018/07/06/626664156/gop-senators-spend-july-4-in-moscow
Did Johnson share the opinion of his colleges?
Nyet.
Johnson, chairman of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, told the Washington Examiner that he thought that that Russian interference in our elections had “been blown out of proportion” and questioned whether the interference of a hated enemy in our elections was a “threat to our democracy.”
Damn, right, Ron, how could the interference of a hated enemy in our elections possibly be a “threat to our democracy”?
He furthermore questioned the value of sanctions on Russia.
“We need to really honestly assess what actually happened, what effect did it have, and what effect are our sanctions actually having, positively and negatively,” he said.
Well said, comrade.
Just Security, an online forum that publishes rigorous analysis of security, democracy, foreign policy, and rights, reported that Johnson had been “a conduit of Russian information.”
The article mentioned that “Russian-linked Ukrainian operatives” directly communicated “with Johnson and his staff” and “Russian-linked Ukrainian operatives” spread disinformation through the news media that was then used by Johnson.
Johnson, it said, participated with Trump in spreading the conspiracy theory that it was Ukraine – and not Russia – that interfered in the 2016 election.
This baseless claim served to benefit Trump and to conceal his relationship with a foreign enemy.
Trump’s claim was debunked by a number of intelligence experts working for the State Department, one of whom said there was no evidence “that Ukraine interfered in the 2016 election.”
A number of Johnson’s critics, including Bruce Murphy, a columnist for a news website in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, referred to Johnson as “a Russian tool,” who engaged in “a pattern of misinformation.”
Johnson, Murphy said, responded to a CIA report about Russian interference by saying he “would need more definitive information before drawing conclusions” – even after receiving such definitive information in a briefing with CIA operatives.
Murphy also said that Johnson also conspired with Trump and his cronies in spreading disinformation about election fraud in the 2020 Presidential Election.
The Nation said that Johnson’s claims were “false.”
The New York Times headlined a story about Johnson: “The election is over, but Ron Johnson keeps promoting false claims of fraud.”
The Nation added that “Johnson is the king of false claims … that invariably end up benefiting the senator and his campaign donors.”
https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/ron-johnson-donald-trump/
Johnson’s claims also benefit Putin and Trump.
Johnson said that the FBI had told him that Russia was using him to spread disinformation. He responded by saying that he “was given the briefing so it could be used against him later.”
“I suspected that the briefing was being given to be used at some future date for the purpose that it is now being used: to offer the biased media an opportunity to falsely accuse me of being a tool of Russia despite warnings,” Johnson said in a statement.
How could anyone think such a thing, Ron Johnson — if that is your real name?
Others also have questioned Johnson’s allegiance to the United States.
But no one has yet questioned his allegiance to Russia.
Political scientist Norm Ornstein, an emeritus scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, a Washington, D.C., conservative think tank, who has referred to Johnson on Twitter as “Putin’s favorite senator. A Putin lickspittle. A Useful idiot to Russia” and an “active insurrectionist enabler” and “serial liar.”
Putin’s favorite senator. A Putin lickspittle. A useful idiot to Russia. Ladies and Gentlemen, Ron Johnson! https://t.co/O0TSUq00nG
— Norman Ornstein (@NormOrnstein) February 28, 2022
Ron Johnson: active insurrectionist enabler; serial liar; dumb as a rock. https://t.co/ulzsHYvnY3
— Norman Ornstein (@NormOrnstein) December 12, 2023
Asha Rangappa, a senior lecturer at Yale University’s Jackson Institute for Global Affairs and a former special agent for the FBI, replied to Ornstein’s tweet by saying, “My dude, You used your position as a senator to push the lie that Ukraine, not Russia, interfered in the 2016 election. That lie was fed to you by Russian intelligence. The FBI warned you. You blew them off. To recap: You acted a witting Russian agent. This. Is. On. You.”
Putin’s favorite senator. A Putin lickspittle. A useful idiot to Russia. Ladies and Gentlemen, Ron Johnson! https://t.co/O0TSUq00nG
— Norman Ornstein (@NormOrnstein) February 28, 2022
