Hey JD Vance, Ukraine is Winning (And Putin is Petrified)

Gaslit Nation

Politics, Society & Culture, News

4.7 • 4.1K Ratings

🗓️ 20 May 2026

⏱️ 27 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Ukraine is winning, and a botox-bloated Putin looks like a dead-man walking. While the spineless MAGA right still tries to block aid, Ukrainian innovation has turned Russia's imperialist delusion into an embarrassing nightmare, as predicted on Gaslit Nation at the start of the full-scale invasion.

Award-winning war reporter James Verini, author of The Theater: Courage and Survival in the Defining Atrocity of the Ukraine War, joins Gaslit Nation to discuss the desperation rattling Moscow. Putin wanted a grand Cold War rematch, but instead, he's trapped in a catastrophic, modern-day Afghanistan with a staggering one million Russian casualties.

The reality the MAGA death cult and isolationists ignore? Ukraine is the true vanguard of global democracy. They are out-innovating Goliath with world-leading drone technology and defending the open society while MAGA lackeys play craven partisan games. Putin's radical, Dugin-fueled imperial ego has officially broken Russia, much like Trump's is breaking the U.S.

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Show Notes:

Opening clip: Spanish actor Javier Bardem at the Cannes Film Festival, saying what needs to be said: https://bsky.app/profile/hannibal.bsky.social/post/3mm4eomatbk2t

The Theater Courage and Survival in the Defining Atrocity of the Ukraine War By James Verini https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Theater/James-Verini/9781668062203

Russia in No Mood for Celebration on Kremlin's Biggest Day of the Year: As the country heads into Victory Day, the economy is stalling, internet restrictions are growing and the Kremlin is fearing Ukrainian attacks. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/08/world/europe/russia-mood-victory-day.html?unlocked_article_code=1.jlA.mQvz.bsjmfvh1AxHe&smid=url-share

Ukraine is forging the future of war: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/17/world/killer-robots-ukraine-ebola-qatar.html?unlocked_article_code=1.jlA.Tkdm.TaPFOgd0QcG8&smid=url-share

Kyivan Rus, then and now: How has Russia distorted the history of Kyivan Rus? https://kyivindependent.com/kyivan-rus-then-and-now/

The men who could succeed Vladimir Putin https://theweek.com/feature/briefing/1024619/putins-potential-successors

Democrats bypass Mike Johnson on Ukraine aid with GOP help https://www.axios.com/2026/05/13/ukraine-aid-discharge-petition-mike-johnson-kiley

Putin health fears as Russian president appears at victory parade with 'swollen' face https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/putin-health-fears-as-russian-president-appears-at-victory-parade-with-swollen-face/ar-AA22ZIE7

Transcript

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0:00.0	Toxic masculinity comes from, which is the education, the bad education that we have received for many ages,
0:07.0	which I'm part of, I'm 57 years old, coming from a very machista country called Spain,
0:13.0	where there is an average of two women killed monthly by their ex-husbands or ex-boyfriends, which is horrible.
0:22.6	Just that amount of women being murdered, it's unbelievable.
0:27.6	And we kind of normalized it.
0:30.6	It's like, well, yeah, it's horrible.
0:32.6	I mean, are we fucking nuts?
0:35.6	We are killing women because some men think they own them, they possess them.
0:42.1	So, and that problem also goes to Mr. Trump, I'm Mr. Putin, and Mr. Netanyahu.
0:48.1	The big balls man saying, my cock is bigger than yours, and I'm going to bomb the shit out of you. It's a fucking male
0:56.1	toxic behavior that is creating thousands of death people. So yeah, we have to talk about
1:03.0	it. And I think if we are talking about it is because we are more aware of it, thankfully.
1:11.6	Our opening clip was Spanish actor Javier Bardem at the Cannes Film Festival, promoting his new film, The Beloved, and saying what needs to be said.
1:30.2	Welcome to Gaslit Nation, a show about corruption in America and rising autocracy worldwide.
1:35.2	I am your host, Andrea Chalupa, a journalist and filmmaker, and the writer and producer of
1:39.8	the journalistic thriller, Mr. Jones, about Stalin's genocide of famine in Ukraine. It's the film
1:45.1	the Kremlin doesn't want you to see, so be sure to watch it. And we are joined this week by James
1:50.6	Verini. He writes for The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, a National Geographic, among other
1:56.0	publications. His work has been awarded a National Magazine Award and a George Polk Award and has been nominated for multiple Pulitzer Prizes.
2:04.5	He's covered conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia, Palestine, Sudan, Ukraine, Central African Republic, Nigeria, Honduras, and many other places.
2:14.1	Burini is the author of the new book, The Theater, Courage and Survival, and the
2:19.7	defining atrocity of the Ukraine War. And the very first question I have for you, James,
	...

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