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Leigh Ann Caldwell, Julia Ioffe, Peter Hamby, Abby Livingston & John Heilemann
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Sunday through Thursday
Puck’s daily political newsletter from Washington—featuring Leigh Ann Caldwell, Julia Ioffe, Peter Hamby, Abby Livingston, and John Heilemann—on what’s really happening in this town, from the White House to the Pentagon to Capitol Hill, K Street, and the campaign trail.
THE LATEST ARTICLES
Julia Ioffe
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June 21, 2022
The Putin Apostates Come Home
If the West was counting on sanctions to create enough economic pain for the Russian population to rise up, sweep Putin from power, and end the war, they have been wildly unsuccessful. In fact, many conscientious objectors who at first fled the country are wending their way back home.
Julia Ioffe
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June 14, 2022
The War Comes to Kalorama
Philippe Étienne, the French ambassador to the U.S., is probably the most popular, and polished, figure in establishment Washington. And he may know more about Russia than anyone else in this town.
Julia Ioffe
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June 7, 2022
The Case Against Appeasement
Allowing Russia to impose its will on the Ukrainians in the name of peace—denying their agency, both as a people and as a democratic state—isn’t justice, and it won’t bring peace.
Julia Ioffe
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June 1, 2022
Putin’s D.C. Waiting Game
Right now, America’s support of Ukraine remains a bipartisan issue. But below the surface, an ebbing of financial support may be coming into sight.
Julia Ioffe
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May 24, 2022
“Ukraine Must Win”: A Kremlin Defector Tells All
Under Swiss guard and fearing for his safety, a former Russian diplomat opens up about his shocking resignation, Putin’s nuclear threat, and how it all ends.
Julia Ioffe
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May 17, 2022
Putin’s Wood Chipper
As we approach the three-month mark in Russia’s attack on Ukraine, there is plenty of cause for optimism—a “dynamic stalemate” in which Russia’s military is collapsing while Ukraine is fighting with discipline, valor, and Western aid. But as one Russian military expert told me, Russia is focused on “grinding down” the Ukrainian military. The word he used, though, was “peremolot',” which can be translated to describe something that a wood chipper does.
Julia Ioffe
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May 10, 2022
About a Boy: The Roots of Putin’s Evil
Putin’s childhood taught him many lessons that shape his thinking and actions to this day: that might makes right, that existing hierarchies can only be changed through violence, that force is the only language that matters, that power is always a zero-sum game.
Julia Ioffe
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May 3, 2022
Putin vs. His Oligarchs
As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine enters its third month, Putin’s chummy ruling class is feeling the burn. It’s a reminder that they were never so chummy in the first place.
Julia Ioffe
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April 27, 2022
Biden’s New Ukrainian Calculus
Before the invasion, the administration was hesitant to provide too many weapons to Ukraine since, the thinking went, they wouldn’t stop the inevitable and would likely end up in Putin’s hands. Now, the calculus is different.
Julia Ioffe
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April 22, 2022
Mothers for Putin
Vladimir Putin’s misbegotten war is a blatant attempt to restore his vision of the Russky mir—a pan-Slavic neo-Soviet nation state built on Russian dominance. And yet his war is being waged by the very young men, and supported by the families, that his government has oppressed.
