> I wonder if Putin and Co believed their own BS? Of course they did, that's how narcissistic psychopaths like Putin operate. And just to be clear it doesn't m

> I wonder if Putin and Co believed their own BS? Of course they did, that's how narcissistic psychopaths like Putin operate. And just to be clear it doesn't matter what "and Co" think, it only matters what Putin thinks. At this point he's surrounded himself with enough lickspittles and sycophants that he never hears the truth. Think about this from Putin's perspective. Putin invaded Georgia and the world did nothing. Putin invaded Crimea and the world did nothing. Putin interfered in the American election in 2016 and not only did the world do nothing, the US party he helped actually shifted their foreign policy to be more pro Russia at the expense of Ukraine [1]. Trump stood next to Putin and in front of the world told us that he believed Putin's account of 2016, that it was Ukraine, not Russia, who interfered in the election. Republicans defended Trump and by extension Putin at all levels for this. The official party line morphed from the idea that Ukraine interfered to the idea that the interference and hacking was all a hoax that we imagined[2], again helping Putin. Why wouldn't Putin think that 50% of American politicians would support his invasion of Ukraine? Trump's first impeachment was over Trump attempting to extort a bribe from President Zelinksy by withholding diplomatic relations, which at the time the new Zelinsky administration was hoping to use to bolster their legitimacy; and Javelin missiles, which thankfully the Ukrainians now have because they are using them to great effect against Russian armored vehicles. So yeah, Putin probably felt pretty safe going into Ukraine. He probably felt like 50% of the United States political establishment would back him up and cause a complete gridlock for the US trying to muster a response, because they have been on his side since 2016. And he's not wrong, up until last week they were calling him "savvy" and "smart" for gaslighting the world about a Nazi genocide being conducted by Zelinsky! That was before the war crimes so a lot of them have changed their tune, but the song they were singing before was exactly what Putin wanted to hear. He's definitely high on his own supply. [1] https://www.npr.org/2017/12/04/568310790/2016-rnc-delegate-trump-directed-change-to-party-platform-on-ukraine-support https://www.npr.org/2017/12/04/568310790/2016-rnc-delegate-t... [2] And if at long last you still believe it was a hoax, just remember that the loudest voices calling it a hoax for 6 years were just last week calling Putin savvy and that he would never invade Ukraine. They were were dumbstruck when Putin invaded (Tabbi, Greenwald, looking at you). Completely floored. So maybe some people need to take a step back and reassess who are credible voices when it comes to Putin and Russia. To see what Putin was doing over the last month and to conclude that he didn't intend to invade reveals a stark ignorance about Putin and Russia, so really why should we listen to them ever again on this topic? Also read the Muller report and Senate Intel report on these issues, because they're indisputable at this point.