Welcome to this episode of the award-winning Best of Left Podcast in which we take a

look at the result of Republicans having been trending toward Putin fandom for more than a decade, but with each passing year,

the stakes get higher, the propaganda gets more brazen, and what they're willing to support

gets more grotesque.

For context, my first glimpse into this worldview was from a conservative listener around

a decade or more ago who kindly explained to us on the left that what we were not getting was that Republicans

actually like Putin.

At the time there was maybe confusion over the pivot from the cold warrior anti-Russia all the time perspective to the new sort of at the time

lukewarm embrace of Russia on some issues and what he explained was that clearly times it changed and Putin was the kind of strong man leader conservatives liked.

So why not like Putin's Russia? Why not indeed? Sources today include Brian Taylor Cohen, MS NBC, on the media, the Hartman

report, the Rachel Matto show, and the Bradcast with an additional members only clip from Gaslit Nation. Tucker Carlson showed up in Moscow this week to interview Vladimir Putin.

It turned out to be anything but an interview.

Putin droned on for two hours and seven minutes while Tucker sat there like an eager puppy.

Occasionally but rarely he got in a question like this one about the power of the

deep state in Washington.

It sounds like you're describing a system that's not run by the people who are elected in your telling.

That's right.

right.

But more telling than what Tucker asked is what he didn't ask.

Nothing about why Putin invaded a sovereign country, nothing about targeting civilians, nothing

about Russian war crimes. A reporter can't ask Putin a tough question if he wants a real interview.

Why is it that so many of the people that oppose Vladimir Putin end up dead or close to it.

...