Is Russia Headed Towards Collapse?

06/28/23 • 53 min

Putin is weak and getting weaker. In this special live taping of Gaslit Nation, Russian mafia expert Olga Lautman, who has a long history of investigating and exposing the Russian mafia state’s active measures in the U.S. and Europe, joins Andrea to discuss where things are headed in Russia’s escalating power struggle, what it means for Ukraine, and how the world needs to start preparing for a post-Putin Russia.

“Putin is finished,” Olga warns in this urgent discussion. Putin may be forced into retirement in a dacha on the outskirts of Russia or “die in his sleep,” with Shoigu or another tool of the Russian security forces becoming the new strongman. Prighozin’s attempted military coup was the inevitable escalation of growing tensions between warring factions, but as Olga points out, the siloviki–the ruthless, imperialistic, genocidal security forces–are in charge, and always have been, even during the collapse of the Soviet Union. They are the kingmakers, and it’s clear that they want Putin gone. Prigozhin served a purpose of striking Putin with a fatal blow, and the months ahead will continue to weaken him as Russia continues to lose an unwinnable war in Ukraine.

Our bonus episode this week includes our extended audience Q&A at our live taping, with a focus on Russia’s influence campaigns in U.S. elections. As mentioned in this week’s show, there’s going to be a special live taping of Gaslit Nation held in New York City at the Lower East Side venue Caveat, hosted by Kevin Allison of the popular and provocative storytelling podcast RISK! on Saturday August 5th at 4pm EST. The discussion will include the making of the brand new Gaslit Nation graphic novel Dictatorship: It’s Easier Than You Think!, and include an opportunity to order signed copies. For tickets to join the event in person or wherever you are by watching the livestream, get your tickets here!

Previous Episode

Military Coup Attempt in Russia: What Comes Next?

Where is Putin? No one has seen him lately other than a short video of Putin looking uncharacteristically tense addressing the nation, calling out a military coup against him that killed around a dozen Russians in his military. Putin's longtime operative, the Russian warlord Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the private military army Wagner (named after Hitler's favorite composer!) has turned into Putin's Frankenstein monster. When you have an in-house coup guy, expect him to turn his coup skills on you eventually, especially when he, like the rest of the ruthless oligarchs around you, smell blood in the water. Prighozin's coup attempt is the greatest domestic challenge launched against the Kremlin since the fall of the Soviet Union, and the succession fight over who takes over from the increasingly weak Putin is far from over. In this brief summary, Andrea gives some of the highlights of the dramatic events of the weekend, and discusses where the Kremlin succession battle may be headed, and what it means for Ukraine and others caught in the middle. For a deep dive discussion, join our special live taping of Gaslit Nation this coming Tuesday June 27 at 12pm EST with Russian mafia expert Olga Lautman, where we'll discuss whether Russia is headed towards a civil war, if and when Putin might be disposed of, and how his agents are active abroad in their fascist war against the democratic alliance. To get access to that, receive your ticket to the live taping by supporting the show at the Truth-teller level or higher on Patreon, and cancel anytime. A link to the virtual event will be sent to your inbox via Patreon the morning of the event. Thank you to everyone who supports the show -- we could not make Gaslit Nation without you!

Next Episode

Teaser - Reform the Supreme Court Now!

The Supreme Court is a cesspool of corruption with three members appointed by a Russian mafia asset. It's also treated in America like a sacred priesthood above the law, allowing Clarence Thomas and Sam Alito to profit from deep pocketed far-right megadonors. The Fox News majority of the Supreme Court has stripped our country of essential rights, condemning people to die from lack of reproductive healthcare with the overturning of Roe v. Wade; allows businesses to proudly discriminate, furthering a genocidal scapegoating culture that drives the Republican Party and its base; struck down student loan debt forigiveness while corporations benefit from the same types of programs and more; and destroyed Affirmative Action for nonwhite people -- the white and rich like Jared Kushner will continue to buy their way into the Ivy League. These seismic Supreme Court rulings are the bountiful harvest of a far-right long game in America played over decades, as we discussed in our 2022 series Rising Up from the Ashes: Cassandra and Other Experts on Rebuilding Our Democracy. Most notably, historian Nancy Maclean who wrote Democracy in Chains, journalist Anne Nelson who wrote Shadow Network, LGBTQ+ civil rights lawyer Chase Strangio of the ACLU, and Jessica Mason Pieklo and Imani Gandy of the podcast Boom Lawyered described a far-right long game with zero strategy in response from the Democratic Party. That and our first three episodes examining the 2016 election as a crime scene explain how we got here. Now what to do about it. The best strategy we have so far to climb out of this black hole of corruption is to stay engaged locally with local races, local candidates and to call out and help clean up corruption where we live; invest in local media; contribute to mutual aid; and demand immediate and urgent judicial reforms from our elected federal leaders. For that, Senator Edward Markey has reintroduced legislation to expand the Supreme Court, and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse has introduced legislation for term limits on Supreme Court justices -- both have backing from establishment Democrats and should be fought for by the grassroots. For more on yet another devastating Supreme Court Hunger Games Spring, Elie Mystal, as always, brilliantly sums up what's at stake in his piece on the destruction of affirmative action in The Nation: "The Supreme Court Has Killed Affirmative Action. Mediocre Whites Can Rest Easier." Show Notes: You're invited to a Gaslit Nation night out August 5th in NYC to celebrate the launch of Dictatorship: It's Easier Than You Think! Details here. REUTERS: Reparations: Where slavery’s descendants stand https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-slavery-lawmakers/ REUTERS: Slavery’s Descendants The ancestral ties to slaveholding of today’s political elite https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-slavery/ 2022 series Rising Up from the Ashes: Cassandra and Other Experts on Rebuilding Our Democracy. https://twitter.com/gaslitnation/status/1513518421090185222?lang=en