Russian Dressing

Russian hysteria has risen to such heights that I'm beginning to worry.

I recently had stuffed cabbage and my wife ate some borscht. Does that make us somehow sympathetic to Vladimir Putin and his minions? What if you dine in a Russian Restaurant and speak with a waiter whose cousin still resides in Russian and has friend who works for Russian government intelligence? Would a Democratic heavyweight like Tim Kane be justified in calling you a "traitor?' What if you're foolish enough to purchase a set of Russian Matryoshka dolls. The fact that they're nesting dolls implies that there's something hidden. What are you hiding? Is it okay for your daughter to attend a gymnastics school run by an ex-Olympian who happens to be Russian and—horror of horrors—voted for Donald Trump? Is the school tainted? is your daughter? Is a congressional investigation imminent?

Why hasn't the NYT or WaPo published page one "investigative" articles that describe leaks about, say, Russian dressing being served at a White House dinner? After all, that's almost sedition, isn't it?

Silly? Sure. But no more ridiculous than the current Russian collusion meme that's all the vogue. It's all nonsense be promulgated by the four constituencies who'd like nothing better than keeping the current administration off balance.

The irony is that the same hypocrites that wail about Russia interference in our political process have accomplished what Putin could not. They have roiled our politics and impeded our domestic and foreign policy. Then again, that's exactly the objective, not only of Putin, but of the four constituencies as well.

UPDATE:
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Holman Jenkins comments on the Donald Trump Jr. story—the latest installment of Russiamania:

... after the first flush of hysteria, Don Jr. may be only half a rube for not being more sensitive to the Russian connection, which would explode in Hindenburg fashion only with the DNC email hack a few days later.

Bloomberg News suggests that Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya wasn’t bringing secrets gleaned from Russia’s “crown prosecutor,” but news she read in the Russian press. Not the Russians but a Russian was trying to peddle this info to Trump Tower, as a pretext to lobby on behalf of a wealthy Russian client.

And it wasn’t any Russian but a tubby British music publicist who babbled fourth-hand, or perhaps was apple polishing all on his own, in claiming “Russian government support” for the Trump effort.

The farcical element continues to predominate in Russiagate, including with the mostly ignored Russian influence on FBI chief James Comey’s actions.

But real trouble can flow even from a farce. Thinkers for whom Russia was just one problem in a world full of problems, who previously did not identify Moscow as the No. 1 enemy, now do so, vociferously, for fear of being lumped in with Mr. Trump as a traitor to America or some such.

A mob is a machine for mass-producing cowards and bullies. That’s where we are now. Just turn on cable TV.

The "mob"—a.k.a. the four constituencies—would be laughable in its actions, if it wasn't so dangerous. There is no problem with criticizing a sitting president, but this goes fat beyond critique. It is an attempt at a slow motion coup, and it is despicable for its intent, its hypocrisy, and its dishonesty.