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   From: diaperdon@jam.rr.com   
      
   The right rediscovers its admiration for Vladimir Putin   
   Under Obama, much of the right expressed its admiration for the Russian   
   president. Under Biden, it appears to be happening again.   
   /   
      
   By Steve Benen   
      
   Early on in his presidency, Donald Trump was reminded in an interview that   
   Russian President Vladimir Putin is "a killer." The Republican replied,   
   "There are a lot of killers. We've got a lot of killers. What, do you   
   think our country's so innocent?"   
      
   As we discussed at the time, Americans weren't accustomed to hearing their   
   president be quite this critical of the United States. It was just as odd   
   to see a U.S. chief executive drawing a moral equivalence between us and   
   an autocracy.   
      
   Four years later, as Joe Biden's presidency got underway, the Democrat was   
   asked whether he sees Putin as "a killer." Biden, unlike his immediate   
   predecessor, replied, "I do."   
      
   This apparently didn't sit well with the Russian leader, who responded by,   
   among other things, challenging the American president to participate in   
   some kind of televised debate. As Jon Chait noted soon after, it was at   
   this point when Trump's allies immediately weighed in -- "on Putin's   
   side."   
      
   They weren't alone. Conservative media seemed quite excited about the   
   debate challenge -- Fox News featured two side-by-side images of Biden and   
   Putin, though the latter wasn't wearing a shirt -- and Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-   
   Fla.) added that he believes the Russian would prevail in the hypothetical   
   showdown.   
      
   The implications of such rhetoric are not lost on the GOP base. Slate's   
   William Saletan highlighted some recent polling this week that helped   
   drive the point home:   
      
       Many Republicans personally trust or admire Putin.... More than 60   
   percent of Democrats view Putin very unfavorably, but only 30 percent to   
   40 percent of Republicans do. In two polls taken this week -- one by   
   Morning Consult for Politico, the other by YouGov for the Economist --   
   Putin has a better net favorable rating among Republicans than Biden does,   
   by margins of 16 and 22 points, respectively.   
      
   It is, of course, jarring to see rank-and-file Republican voters think   
   more highly of Putin than Biden, though there is something oddly familiar   
   about the circumstances.   
      
   Circling back to our earlier coverage, it was seven years ago, for   
   example, when then-Republican presidential hopeful Ben Carson wrote about   
   how impressed he was with Russia's direction under Putin's leadership.   
   "Russians seem to be gaining prestige and influence throughout the world   
   as we are losing ours," Carson said, describing the exact opposite of   
   reality.   
      
   The same month, Mike Rogers, at the time the Republican chairman of the   
   House Intelligence Committee, expressed his own admiration: "Putin is   
   playing chess and I think we are playing marbles." Soon after, former   
   half-term Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) added, "People are looking at Putin   
   as one who wrestles bears and drills for oil. They look at our president   
   as one who wears mom jeans."   
      
      
   In August 2014, Kimberly Guilfoyle -- a Fox News personality at the time   
   -- went so far as to say she wanted to see Putin serve as "head of the   
   United States," at least for a little while.   
      
   At the time, it was easy to conclude that the right's contempt for Barack   
   Obama was so intense that many conservatives reflexively looked favorably   
   on one of the then-president's most notable foreign foes.   
      
   But in hindsight, that conclusion was incomplete. After Republicans   
   offered tacit praise for Putin in Obama's second term, Donald Trump forged   
   a partnership of sorts with the Russian leader, which predictably affected   
   the attitudes of GOP voters.   
      
   With Biden in the White House, the trend continues, with Republican voices   
   looking at Putin, not the American president, as the strong leader.   
      
   It's hard not to wonder how the Russian leader would fare in a GOP   
   primary.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)