Moscow Officials Urge Vladimir Putin to Give Up Power
Category: News & Politics
Via: revillug • 2 years ago • 44 commentsBy: Allison Quinn (The Daily Beast)
More and more Russian officials are urging Vladimir Putin to get the hell out of the Kremlin as Moscow suffered another series of humiliating defeats in Ukraine this weekend.
Just one day after several municipal deputies in Putin's hometown of St. Petersburg called on the State Duma to try the Russian leader for treason, their colleagues in Moscow joined in and demanded he step down because his views are "hopelessly outdated."
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
VACATE THE PREMISES
Their plea came as Putin's deranged "special military operation" next door took a spectacular nosedive.
Allison Quinn
News Editor
Published Sep. 10, 2022 11:05PM ET
More and more Russian officials are urging Vladimir Putin to get the hell out of the Kremlin as Moscow suffered another series of humiliating defeats in Ukraine this weekend.
Just one day after several municipal deputies in Putin's hometown of St. Petersburg called on the State Duma to try the Russian leader for treason, their colleagues in Moscow joined in and demanded he step down because his views are "hopelessly outdated."
The open letter to Putin from municipal deputies in the Russian capital's Lomonosovsky district started out by seemingly trying to let him down gently, telling him he had "good reforms" in his first term and part of his second.
But then, "everything went wrong," the deputies said.
"The rhetoric that you and your subordinates use has been riddled with intolerance and aggression for a long time, which in the end effectively threw our country back into the Cold War era. Russia has again begun to be feared and hated, we are once again threatening the whole world with nuclear weapons," the letter read.
"We ask you to relieve yourself of your post due to the fact that your views and your governance model are hopelessly outdated and hinder the development of Russia and its human potential," the deputies said in closing.
Though they made no mention of the war against Ukraine, their plea came as Putin's deranged "special military operation" next door took a spectacular nosedive, with thousands of Russian forces fleeing as Ukraine's military launched a series of surprise counter-offensives and reclaimed nearly 400 square miles of territory in a matter of days.
Even as Russian defense officials sought to play down the mass surrender as nothing more than a strategic maneuver, it was clearly not perceived that way even by many of Putin's most loyal cronies.
The same Russian propagandists who'd spent the first six months of the war thumping their chests about a supposedly "inevitable victory" suddenly changed their tune. Margarita Simonyan, the editor-in-chief of RT who'd repeatedly called for Moscow to mercilessly obliterate Ukraine, suddenly posted a sentimental screed on Twitter calling for unity between the two nations.
"In this situation, the best picture of the future is the overall picture of the past. Our shared past, recent. When everyone was together, when there was Victory Day, when there was a parade, when both Russian and Ukrainian were taught," she wrote, waxing nostalgic over a time when "wonderful songs were sung both in one language and the other."
Even the pro-Kremlin Telegram channels run by Russian military bloggers had a dramatic change of tune as Ukraine claimed new wins Saturday: They began to openly blast military leadership—and Putin personally—for the embarrassing failures.
"Stalin, as much of a vampire as he was, never stooped to this and said how we lost nothing and there are no problems," wrote one pro-Kremlin blogger. "For him, those who cowardly run away and 'withdraw troops' were the alarmists."
Russia would like things to be the way they were before.
This strongly suggests that Putin will either step down or be taken down.
It will not be the former (IMO).
I know mainly what I read on the web of hear on NPR. But what I have heard from experts is that military catastrophes often lead to replacing a leader in Russia.
The fact that elected officials in Russia are now feeling comfortable enough to put out letters like this are shocking.
I don't think Putin will willingly step down. He knows he is in too deep and has too much to lose if he does. The only way he leave office is dragged out handcuffed kicking and screaming or on a stretcher with a sheet over his head.
I do not think he will either. It is the latter of my comment that I believe is most likely.
I agree, Putin can only eliminate so many dissenting officials before the rest try to take him down.
One other thing I would add is that you never know when you are reading about Russia exactly what is based in fact and what is disinformation.
There was a lot of disinformation coming from Russia before they launched their attack on Ukraine intended to lure the west into a false sense of security. The Biden administration apparently knew Russia was intent upon invading Ukraine but the rest of Europe and even Ukraine thought they just needed to talk to Russia more about their grievances and sore points.
Maybe Putin wants the west to believe he is back on his heels at home so we underestimate his next move.
He's a billionaire. A sane person would step down and get out the little black book to start planning parties on the yachts.
Putin has always been fond of a poison tipped umbrella. What goes around.....
Malignant narcissists, like he and #45, will never step down.
"The open letter to Putin from municipal deputies..."
Don't go near the window.
Especially hospital windows. Might die of natural causes.
I think Ukraine should accept the first reasonable peace offer Russia makes. Put an end to all the death. Prolonging the fighting might lead Putin to get really desperate and do something crazy.
I don't disagree and worry about what a more desperate Putin might do. The hard part will be determining what's reasonable.
Moscow is running out of troops and can't mobilize too many more and Putin faces a political backlash if he expands and sends draftees.
Putin may be betting now the worsening energy and economic issues will weaken Western resolve and they may pressure Ukraine to take less than a reasonable deal.
A collapse of the Russian military could make Putin a very desperate despot.
Without the military, the despot is impotent.
And a very desperate despot with his finger on the nuclear button.
If the military listens to him. Those who would actually have to carry out the launch know the nuclear order is suicide.
It's always a game of thrones with a deck of cards...
How wonderful it would be if they could get rid of this asshole. Maybe we could get back to the idea of Russia being part of the community of nations, instead of the outlaw who lives outside of town.
Wouldn’t it be nice if Russia would just join with just about every other modern nation and quit being the asshole for the sake of being the asshole?
For a few minutes in the late 80s/early 90s, I thought it could be possible. But there are too many old men in that country who want to be the next Stalin.
Funny how Trump and Putin think so much alike.
The day when we don't have to see either of their faces ever again will be a happy day for so many . . .
Sounds so much like #45 and so many of his supporters/enablers . . . . . . ain't it somethinge how they're so similar?
Seems the revolt is growing.
Putin Faces Second Revolt as Russian Officials Slam War, Demand Resignation
In addition, reports are appearing that say that Russia has lost hundreds of tanks and other vehicles plus thousands captured in the Ukraine counterattack in the NE.
The gulags must be pretty full by now with anyone that is against Putin...
I hear open windows is the new fresh air policy...and saves dollars...
For some reason can't open the link..bloody Russians at it again...
I just tried opening it and it says ''page not found''....It's the Russians for sure.
There Russian here, they're Russian there..they are Russian everywhere...🤣🤣
Boris and Natasha are running amuck it's time to bring in Rocky and Bullwinkle.
wow
Destroyed or captured 400 more tanks and vehicles this weekend.
Shot down 3 more war planes, two helo's and 10 more unmanned drones.
The Uke's are gaining ground so fast they don't have enough blue and yellow flags to hoist.
From little things big things grow....
As the Russians are now finding out...🇺🇦🇺🇦
I saw that on the news this morning - the raising of all those blue and yellow flags!!!!!!!!
Sometimes bears do step on sharp pointed thorns. Ukraine proved to be particularly sharp and pointed!
I think they've reclaimed a lot more since this . . . . .
Before Putin steps down it's more likely he'll repeat the Stalin purges.
" Determined to eradicate any possible threat to his position, Stalin began a purge of his own party, targeting enemies both real and perceived . More than half of the 1,996 who attended the 17 th Congress had been arrested by the end of 1939. Most were executed by Stalin’s secret police; others were put to work in the labor camps of icy Siberia; few returned.
Stalin intended to kill anybody who might pose a potential threat; innocence of any actual crime afforded no protection . Intellectuals, scientists, and artists were all targeted. The Red Army was by no means exempt, and thousands of its officers suspected of disloyalty were removed from their posts or executed.
The purges spread like a contagion through the ranks and society . Even the innocent would confess to crimes and name friends and acquaintances as accomplices"
10 Brutal Realities of Life in Stalin's Soviet Union - Toptenz.net
Stalin is one of Putin's heroes.
“By raising the figure of Stalin, the Putin regime is trying to raise the idea that collective interests are more important than individual lives, and that means the regime has less responsibility to society,” Lev Gudkov, who conducts the Levada Center’s Stalin polls, told me."
Putin once said “ We can criticize the commanders and Stalin all we like, but can anyone say with certainty that a different approach would have enabled us to win? ”
Opinion | Stalin, Russia’s New Hero - The New York Times (nytimes.com)
Putin channelling his hero Stalin with horrifying latest plot
Putin channelling Stalin with terrifying plan to starve the developing world | World | News | Express.co.uk
The truly crazy thing is we likely have millions here on our own shores who are enamored with such "strong men" who try to rule with an iron fist. They apparently see that type of leader, like Putin and his lapdog dirty Donald, as "real Leaders", or rather, 'Dear Leaders', and line up behind them in goosestep while telling everyone around them they're not really fascists and it's the leftists that are the real threat to democracy.
Didn't Vladimir Putin step down as President in 2008? Dimitry Medvedev was elected President. Doesn't anyone remember Obama's open microphone gaffe with Medvedev?
Don't you remember Rokirovka?
Then who is the queen? You know, the only chess piece less powerful than the king is the pawn. In chess, the king is very constrained and has little power. The king cannot dominate the chess board.
Rokirovka is a defensive move that gets a more powerful piece into the game. The king hides in the corner while the pieces that can dominate the chessboard are in play. So, where does the power really reside in Russia?
Medvedev played at being the king, Putin was always in charge of the board.
I guess you're unaware that Medvedev was just Putins hand picked puppet prime minister that Putin installed as President temporarily because the Russian constitution at the time had term limits that didn't allow him to stay President. Since then Putin has pushed through changes that will allow him to stay in power through 2036.
" Initiated by President Vladimir Putin, that crucial amendment would allow him to run for president two more times despite a constitutional provision that limits the number of presidential terms to two. By the next presidential election, Putin will have served two four-year terms between 2000 and 2008 and two six-year terms between 2012 and 2024. If the amendments are approved, Putin will be able to remain in power until 2036 ."
Breaking Presidential Term Limits in Russia and Beyond | Wilson Center
"Vladimir Putin has signed a law that will allow him to run for the presidency twice more in his lifetime, potentially keeping him in office until 2036."
Vladimir Putin passes law that may keep him in office until 2036 | Vladimir Putin | The Guardian
Only those with their heads up their own asses believe Medvedev had any actual power.
Of course, though I'm not sure why its considered a "gaffe". He was expressing the fact that he had little to no room to negotiate until after the election. If Obama hadn't won then it would have been Mitt Romney negotiating. And of course that comment was all before Putin's illegal invasion and annexation of Crimea in 2014, back when we were still hopeful that Russia would truly abandon their authoritarian fascist heritage and join the capitalist western democracies with actual human rights, civil rights and freedom for their citizens.
No, most of us recognized WHO Obama was really telling he was going to be more flexible after the elections.
Agreed.