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Notes -
What propaganda war is Russia winning?
That the West is the villain in Ukraine, despite Russia being the aggressor. Russian propaganda flows freely through Western societies, while the reverse is not true. Russia is scoring more and more wins because of this fact.
Who believes that in the US, besides the dissident right (most of whom believe that for entirely domestic tribal reasons)?
It mostly is the dissident right as you say, but you shouldn't just handwave them away. They altered the outcome. They prevented Ukraine aid from being passed. It might eventually pass, but it will come delayed and probably quite a bit less than was originally intended.
Ukraine aid got blocked on domestic political considerations -- namely that Biden wants it and wasn't willing to provide anything of value in return. Russian propaganda wasn't related.
First, there shouldn't need to be a quid pro quo for initiatives that are just generally good for the country, which Ukraine aid is. We're providing assistance, building up our own withered defense-industrial base for a potential future hot conflict against China, and inflicting losses on an ally of China who has very explicitly stated anti-American and anti-Western views. FDR didn't need to give Republicans a bunch of concessions to fight WW2.
Second, Biden was willing to give concessions on immigration by signing the most conservative immigration bill in a generation, something Republicans were on board with until it looked like it could actually pass, then Trump sabotaged the agreement.
Russian propaganda isn't the only reason why Republicans dislike Ukraine aid, but it's certainly a part of it. I've debated the Ukraine issue a lot, and Russian arguments like "James Baker pinky-promised not to expand NATO eastward" have been prominent, even on this very forum.
That's a fine marketing pitch but terrible game theory.
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Explicitly allowing 5,000 illegals per day is neither a concession nor conservative. The fact that Republicans were on board with that even for a second is just evidence that the Republican Party is useless and not conservative.
The 5000 number is a ceiling, not a floor. It's the maximum before the law triggers and allows the president to use additional measures to reduce illegal crossings. There is currently no cap at all, so the 5000 number, while still being higher than it should be, is massively lower than the status quo.
"Allows the president" is the problem here. There's no reason to believe Biden would do anything at all. The concession is fake.
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How about zero? The “cap” means nothing. Why not “cap” murders, assaults, or burglaries? Enforce the damn law.
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I’d say it’s winning the propaganda war in the non-aligned world.
Even if so, banning TikTok in the US would help that how?
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