Why is Trump taking humiliation after humiliation without being angry at Putin? His behaviour, in every other part of his life, is a strong and angry reaction to anything he finds offensive. But not here. Not when he is publicly humiliated to a degree no American president has ever been before.

Trump being a Russian asset - blackmailed by Putin for his "acts" is getting a lot of wind...

Just sent this out, mostly free. The Epstein files show just how close he was to Russian sources. They also make it clear that Epstein represented a historic opportunity to collect Kompromat on the rich and famous. Nothing would terrify a narcissist more. open.substack.com/pub/phillips...

The only saving grace of the last two days is that Trump allowed Putin to humiliate him and the USA, and Trump at least didn’t even pretend that he was angry and talk about Graham Blumenthal. At this point he can’t even bother to care.

Bankrolling the propaganda film Melania while at the same time slashing international reporting pretty much sums up why we are where we are.

1. Noam Chomsky's response to the first tranche of Epstein docs - arrogant, high-handed, obfuscatory and, we now know, dishonest - reminded me of something: his response to my questions about genocide denial, 15 years ago. 🧵 www.monbiot.com/2012/05/21/2...

This.

“Unless Trump does something dramatic soon, even the most hopeful will have to admit that he is not a fool, but is happy to spread Russian disinformation in a way that helps Putin the most and harms Ukraine. Indeed it is just the latest example of how Trump is helping Putin kill Ukrainians.”

This.

Hi All, I sent out two pieces yesterday in another crazy day. The second, last night was how Trump has, once again, helped Putin kill and freeze Ukrainians. It’s free and I even had to update it this morning after Trump defended Putin's war crimes last night. open.substack.com/pub/phillips...

As a scholar of Soviet espionage, may I say: Duh.

Always remember. Not defeating Russia is a choice that Europeans and Americans are making. Nothing more, nothing less.

Epstein is being described by the Polish PM as a possible Russian spy. If so, it would explain a great deal. All the Epstein “evidence” would actually be kompromat taking in the rich and powerful to serve Kremlin interests. www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2...

The best argument against Trump being an outright Russian agent, is that no Russian agent would be so obviously and outwardly devoted to and besotted with Vladimir

Great read on Trump’s motives towards Russia “Putin waited for the temperatures to drop and stockpiled drones and missiles to continue his genocidal attacks against the Ukrainian people……. …..We are dealing with terrorists who must be forced to stop violence” ⤵️

Trump's assistance to the Russian attack on Ukrainian power and heating last night was so egregious that I put together this short, free piece on it. He helped Putin kill Ukrainians. If the USA does not do something soon, the US should be seen as a Putin ally. open.substack.com/pub/phillips...

Good to repeat this..

I hope people understand what happened here. Yesterday in the late afternoon, Trump said that Putin had promised not to attack Ukraine in such a way that it would damage their heating. Then a few hours later, that is exactly what the Russians did in a massive attack.

Nailing it as per usual.

uper podcast with @johnsipher.bsky.social and @astroterry.bsky.social . They are both superbly situated to comment on how the US has gotten into this mess and even how we might get out. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/t...

Important

The Trump administration is engaging massively and openly in corruption: lavish gifts for the felon president, pardons for sale, selling meme coins, huge membership fees to DJT for the board of “peace” without any accountability… The GOP agrees. the US is no longer a functional democracy.

Just sent out this. There is a debate about whether the guardrails protecting democratic institutions in the USA are holding. Sadly they are not. When it comes to protecting against corruption, the guardrails no longer seem to exist. It could destroy the US system. open.substack.com/pub/phillips...

“The Republicans should say, ‘We want to take over. We should take over the voting in at least 15 places.’ The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting,” he said during an appearance on Dan Bongino’s podcast. And all the right wingers claiming they support the constitution will happily go along.

Trump knows the Republicans are heading to defeat in 2026, he also knows it will be a catastrophe for him if this happens. Therefore, he will try to corrupt the election. It’s simple logic. www.politico.com/news/2026/02...

Once you understand that the administration is a criminal enterprise, you can grasp that there is no way to serve it with honor. If you are in it, it’s impossible not to be at least an accessory to many crimes.

1/4🧵 #Ukraine Excerpts from OBrien's weekly👇 #Russia is doing really bad in the war, and there is absolutely no "Great Power" at work here. Worst losses, compared to any Great Power, since ww2. Their gains are close to zero. Two years in, Chasiv Yar is STILL not entirely taken!

So Trump is now deploying ICE to protect government property in Democratic cities? How does that have to do with Immigration and Customs? The growth of a personal paramilitary force continues unabated.

“ from being a great power marching to victory, Russia is a “declining power” making tiny advances at a shockingly high cost.”

The corruption went into overdrive even before the inauguration. People saying that the American system of checks and balances is holding are detached from reality. When it comes to checking corruption, they don’t seem to exist. www.wsj.com/politics/pol...

I repeat .. russia Is Not A "Great Power"

Hi everyone, just sent out my free weekend update. First a note of thanks--readers donated enough last week to Come Back Alive that the Ukrainians could have shot down up to 10 Russian attack drones terrorizing Ukrainian cities. That is amazing and worthy of note. open.substack.com/pub/phillips...

"Even as the original prognostications turned out to be laughably inaccurate (the US has stopped all aid, and Ukraine fights on), the same general idea has come out of the White House... the war is trending in such a way that Russia will get that land regardless."

Once again, the only way the actions of Trump and his supporters makes sense is if you accept that they have no intention of willingly giving up power, regardless of what happens in any democratic process.

They've just arrested a journalist, so this isn't as outlandish as it seems. bsky.app/profile/did:...

Do not pass this off as the ravings of a looney, old, narcissist. These false reports are going to be used to try and corrupt the 2026 elections by increasing White House Power over the vote. It could spark off the greatest crisis in the USA since the Civil War.

Hi All, a new piece. The word "victory" is not used about Ukraine nearly as much as it should. People have fallen for the Trump-Putin narrative of Russian strength too often. Ukraine and its partners need to think in terms of victory, and this is what that means. open.substack.com/pub/phillips...

An important reveal in this story. ICE is being pulled out of Maine after starting its "enhanced" operations over a week ago. Maine is also a swing state in the Senate elections this year. Internal Republican polling about the impact of ICE must be gruesome. mainemorningstar.com/2026/01/29/s...

Trump needs someone who he can trust in the future to stop a coup d'état by a former hot dog selling warlord.

Trump’s Board of Corruption signs up a truly awesome member.

🎯👇 "He created the force, he supported the force, he lionized the force and he used them as his tool to cause retribution. You would think that this would at least be acknowledged, but oh no. Now that ICE did exactly what it was always going to do... the responsibility is down to anyone but Trump."

Mr OBrien’s substack is a very important read if you want a better understanding of how an army of out of control menial men directed by a very dangerous sick sociopath(s) has brought us to the point of killing us with zero consequence. We ALL must be an Alex Pretti & RESIST WITH VIGOR!!!

Wait, why would Iran have to negotiate not to have nuclear weapons if Trump, as he boasted, "obliterated" Iran's nuclear program a few months ago. Might it be that this was nonsense?

I get so many kind messages from subscribers to my Substack, and I have always kept them private. However, I just got this and loved it! I'm going to always aim for the "righteous-but-rational" vibe. Thanks CHM

Identical to Russia. The Tsar is never blamed, only his subjects. This is how MAGA degenerates American society, back to the Middle Ages, along with Russia, North Korea and the other "shithole countries".

This is a great piece by @phillipspobrien.bsky.social on why it is the President and not his evil counsellors that is to blame for ICE and its excesses - and why the media are pretending otherwise.

Just sent out this free piece. The response to the execution of Alex Pretti reveals how we have gotten into this mess. The anger is not directed at Trump, who caused this whole situation. open.substack.com/pub/phillips...

Here is a temperature map (in celsius) of the USA today, during what is being called the "Big Freeze". Ukraine was colder than this basically every day from Jan 5-23. And thanks to the USA helping Putin, the country was starved of heat and power.

What Rutte does not seem to get is that the USA will not defend Europe anyway. Doesnt matter what Europe wants. And of course Europe can defend itself.