Masha Gessen is full of shit. She is intentionally spreading FUD about Russia

[KittyWampus]

and Putin entangled with Trump and republicans and Chris Hayes is a fool to have her on his show.

She thinks this all just paranoia.

And she's casting shade on the IC.

Please keep this in mind if you see her on tv. Take what she says with a boulder of salt.

[MineralMan]

1. Hmm...I'm not familiar with that name.

So, I can neither agree or disagree.

[KittyWampus]

2. She is an author from Russia who wrote a book about Putin and supposedly is antagonistic

towards him.

But her appearance on Hayes' show is extremely suspicious.

[bettyellen]

6. I thought got it was strange how she was dismissing Flynns actions - gaslighting...

[MineralMan]

7. Oh. OK.

I had no point of reference.

[ananda]

16. I watched her for a few minutes.

She was really working hard to downplay and dismiss the evidence.

She is clearly a Russian plant for 45 and Putin.

I'm sorry, but Chris Hayes has been very disappointing lately.

[Raster]

22. I also thought her positioning just a tad bit off.

[still_one]

3. doubt about what? Is she saying there was no Russian involvement with the trump administration?

[KittyWampus]

8. she's downplaying it and blaming the IC. Calling it all paranoia.

[still_one]

32. thanks for the clarification

[flamingdem]

4. I can see someone with her background being turned off by the old cold war

tropes being tossed around... but that's not the point.

It could be Russians it could be another wanna be super power - the point is the collusion and the integrity of OUR politicians.

[Blaukraut]

5. She came across as a Russia apologist

Poo pooing anonymous sources and intel leaks.

[KittyWampus]

9. thank you for confirming my take on her interview.

[Blaukraut]

10. Even Hayes wasn't buying it and he usually doesn't push back a lot

[triron]

11. I also thought it was a strange interview.

She caught Chris off guard I think. He seemed a little flustered.

[KittyWampus]

12. I think she is intentionally spreading FUD and I don't trust her.

[triron]

13. FUD?

[KittyWampus]

14. fear, uncertainty and doubt. It's what you do to squash something.

[milestogo]

26. Fucked Up Drivel?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

15. I thought the same thing. Heard her on XM Radio, didn't know who she was,

and couldn't figure out why she was dismissing all of these rapidly-connecting dots as mere conspiracy theorizing.

[triron]

17. Perhaps she is getting pressured??

[KittyWampus]

18. Or she has an agenda.

[Blaukraut]

20. I think you're right about an agenda

MSNBC is always inviting her, though.

[Grammy23]

21. I've seen her on the MSNBC nightly shows and never got the vibe

she was expressing tonight. It was odd, indeed, and yes, Chris seemed surprised by what she was saying. The idea was clear that we should be "wary" of things leaked by the intel people. Chris seemed happy and relieved to close that bizarre segment. Me, too. She was giving me the creeps. LOL

[triron]

24. I just wonder if she was getting external marching orders?

[lapucelle]

30. Between Gessen and Ioffe (who answered a question about Sessions by

immediately comparing him to Hillary Clinton as a liar), Hayes needs to hire better bookers.

[rzemanfl]

28. Like maybe she has relatives in Russia? n/t

[skylucy]

19. She is full of shit and all she gave was her personal (rather biased) opinion. I don't think Chris H

was buying it. Opinions are like *ssholes. Everybody's got one. Hers is not that impressive. I don't think she is going to get much traction with it either.

[LenaBaby61]

23. Masha Gessen is full of shit ....

She sure is.

How do we know she's not a ruskie plant?


I very seldom watch Chris Hayes, and this is the reason WHY.

Doofus guests like Gessen.

[stillsoleft]

25. Is she the author of how to survive

An autocratcy? I guess I could google that. I'll be back

Yes, Autocracy: Rules for Survival.

I guess no one needs her book if we get out of this mess.

[rzemanfl]

27. Didn't Samantha Bee do something with her not too long ago? n/t

[JHan]

29. Good call, I thought it was just me.

Her tone was very different and I couldn't figure out why. Very strange.

[volksworker]

31. no doubt

I thought he went easy on her..........5 Trump campaign advisers caught in boldface lies and she thinks its all left wing sour grapes...........there is an agenda behind her treachery. She also seemed as though she was on mood controlling drugs.........strange and disconcerting

[gopiscrap]

39. welcome to DU

[mulsh]

33. After her interview my first thought was "She's trying to tamp down anti-Russian sentiment" I agree

that her appearance and what she was saying was out of character from her previous appearances. Who knows, she may be a tool. She's written some insightful things about surviving Authoritarian regimes. John Dean's writings say many of the same things she does.

I keep telling myself that the primary bad actors in this are the Trump klan. Our adversary, Russia/Putin, is acting as adversaries will act. I don't approve of it and want it routed and punished but the ones to keep our eyes on are the Americans. They're the traitorous actors here.

[JI7]

34. watching right now, agree with what you say

[Gabi Hayes]

35. I'm watching her spout this as I type! amazing. I thought

the last time I saw her she had a handle on things, but she sounds like she just stepped off the set of RT

[triron]

36. Someone got to her?

She got a threat?

[Gabi Hayes]

37. no idea, but what I caught tonight, as I typed was sort of a mishmash,

and I'll have to watch the recording

she was pretty compelling in her criticism of Putin the last time I saw her

https://www.google.com/#q=masha+gessen+trump+putin&*

lots of stuff here. I know she wrote a big fat book about putin, and that's about it


http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12382651-the-man-without-a-face

The Man Without a Face is the chilling account of how a low- level, small-minded KGB operative ascended to the Russian presidency and, in an astonishingly short time, destroyed years of progress and made his country once more a threat to her own people and to the world.

Handpicked as a successor by the "family" surrounding an ailing and increasingly unpopular Boris Yeltsin, Vladimir Putin seemed like a perfect choice for the oligarchy to shape according to its own designs. Suddenly the boy who had stood in the shadows, dreaming of ruling the world, was a public figure, and his popularity soared. Russia and an infatuated West were determined to see the progressive leader of their dreams, even as he seized control of media, sent political rivals and critics into exile or to the grave, and smashed the country's fragile electoral system, concentrating power in the hands of his cronies.

As a journalist living in Moscow, Masha Gessen experienced this history firsthand, and for The Man Without a Face she has drawn on information and sources no other writer has tapped. Her account of how a "faceless" man maneuvered his way into absolute-and absolutely corrupt-power has the makings of a classic of narrative nonfiction.

from what little else I've read about him, he seems to CLEARLY have his eyes on europe, and really wants to fracture the US/NATO alliance

gee, where have we seen this before?????

can't believe all these tom clancy redneck halfwits are SO fricking stupidly blinded to the reality that's actually MORE dangerous at this point than what we faced post 1963-4 cold war, except when Reagan almost got us all blown up

https://www.google.com/#q=ww+III+almost+started+under+reagan&*


but I meanderingly digress:

check this out, from gessen....last december.. make of it what you will:

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/17/opinion/sunday/arguing-the-truth-with-trump-and-putin.html?_r=0

[OilemFirchen]

38. She's simply regurgitating the Greenwaldian alt-left argument:

That the Russia "fixation" is merely a political ploy to attack Trump, while the real focus should be on the (ostensibly once-hated) intelligence community.

Curiously, that's the Trump line as well.

OK. Not so curiously.