Analysis: Putin mocks US presidential race with “support” for Kamala

Russian President Vladimir Putin raised eyebrows on Thursday (5) by expressing his support for the presidential candidacy of US Vice President Kamala Harris, praising the Democratic candidate with some curious comments.

“Our ‘favorite,’ if you can call it that, was the current president, Mr. [Joe] Biden. But he was pulled out of the race, and he advised all his supporters to support Ms. Harris. Well, we will do that – we will support her,” Putin said at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok. “She laughs so expressively and infectiously that it means she is doing well.”

Putin also criticized former President and current Republican candidate Donald Trump for imposing “so many restrictions and sanctions against Russia that no other president has ever introduced before him.”

Putin’s comments come after sweeping sanctions announced by the Biden administration to combat a Russian-backed disinformation effort aimed at influencing the 2024 election and boosting Trump’s candidacy.

And despite the Russian leader’s vocal support for Democrats, US Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said on Wednesday (4) that three Russian companies – under Putin’s direction – used fake profiles to promote false narratives on social media.

Internal documents produced by one of those Russian companies show that one goal of the propaganda effort was to support Trump’s candidacy or whoever emerged as the Republican presidential nominee, according to an FBI affidavit.

So what is Putin trying to achieve?

If the past is any guide, Putin is simply shaking up the domestic political landscape in the United States. In December 2015, Putin praised Trump, calling him the front-runner months before the businessman secured the Republican nomination.

“He is a brilliant and talented person, without a doubt,” Putin said, calling Trump “an exceptional and talented personality.”

Did Putin know something about the 2016 US presidential election that researchers didn’t? No, but the Kremlin leader did little to hide his distaste for Hillary Clinton, then the presumptive Democratic nominee.

And when hacked emails from the Democratic National Committee (DNC) were leaked just before the Democratic National Convention, Putin did not hide his delight.

While U.S. officials have firmly pointed the finger at Russia for the hack, Putin has denied that the Russian state had any involvement. And in remarks at the same forum in September 2016, he praised the leak as a service to voters, saying: “The important thing is the content that was given to the public.”

That content was the embarrassing revelation, in leaked emails, that Democratic officials gave preferential treatment to Clinton.

In other words, the entire DNC hack episode supported the Kremlin’s view that American democracy is a sham: nothing matters but power, everything is decided in smoke-filled rooms, and criticizing countries like Russia over their adherence to democracy and human rights is hypocritical.

Putin’s view of the American political system makes even more sense when we recall a view from exiled Russian political journalist Mikhail Zygar, author of “All the Kremlin’s Men.”

Zygar noted that Putin loved “House of Cards” — the cynical television series about Washington politics — and even recommended it to his ministers.

“This is his American politics book,” Zygar said in an interview.

It’s also possible that Putin was simply taunting Harris by alluding to Trump’s constant insult about the way she laughs.

So if Putin’s view of U.S. electoral politics is viewed through the lens of “House of Cards,” Putin’s endorsement of Kamala Harris would be a kind of Frank Underwood-style move: a kind of poisonous endorsement for the recipient.

*With information from Anna Chernova and Christian Edwards.

This content was originally published in Analysis: Putin mocks US presidential race with “support” for Kamala on the CNN Brasil website.

Source: CNN Brasil