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Jan 4, 2023 17 tweets 7 min read Read on X
In today's #vatnik soup I'll introduce an ex-Army man and conspiracy theorist Michael Flynn. His tenure as the National Security Advisor is the shortest in history, as he had misled VP Pence and lied to the FBI about his dealings with the Russians.

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He served in Afghanistan and in Iraq and rose quickly in rank in the US Army. Throughout his career, he forgot an important idiom, "loose lips sink ships" and shared secret intel very openly: in one incident, he revealed sensitive US intel to Pakistani officials ...

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... on the militant Haqqani network, but it turned out that Haqqani was actually a proxy ally of Pakistan. He was also investigated by the CIA for allegedly sharing highly classified intel with Australian and British forces.

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In 2011, Flynn started working at the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA). Flynn was criticized by his colleagues for his chaotic management style and his views on counter terrorism, and he was released from DIA in mid-2014.

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A leaked e-mail revealed that he was let go because he was "abusive with staff, didn't listen, worked against policy, bad management, etc." He also tended to lie a lot, and his assertions were referred to as "Flynn facts".

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For some reason, Flynn really liked dealing with the Russians. In 2013, while working at the DIA, he became the first US officer to visit Russian military intelligence's (GRU) headquarters in 2013. In 2014, Flynn had a close association with a Russian woman ...

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... and the event was reported to the American authorities.

In Dec, 2015, Flynn attended RT's 10th anniversary gala in Moscow. At the event he was seated next to Putin and gave a talk on world affairs. For this gig, he was paid 45 000 USD.

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His consulting firm Flynn Intel Group Inc. also got lucrative deals from Russian companies in 2015. He received a total of 65 000 USD from companies such as Kaspersky Lab and Volga-Dnepr Airlines.

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But he didn't help just Russia - In Sep, 2016, he was consulting a company linked to Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan.This work paid him 530 000USD and was completed in 2016, but he only registered himself as a foreign agent in 2017. Incidentally, Flynn had condemned...9/17
..Erdogan's regime earlier,praising the ongoing coup d'état attempt against him,but apparently the money changed his mind later on. In 2017 he was discussing with Turkish officials about abducting a Turkish dissident to Turkey,thus bypassing the US extradition legal process.10/17
In 2016 Trump asked Flynn to serve as an advisor on his presidential campaign and was even considered being his running mate. During Trump's campaign, he posted anti-Semitic and conspiracy theory content, including the Pizzagate conspiracy theory.

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Flynn was awarded a position as Trump's National Security Advisor. While there, he did several phone calls with Russian diplomat Sergey Kislyak.During these calls, the two discussed about the election interference, sanctions on Russian officials & UN Security Council vote.

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These conversations were intercepted by the FBI as part of a routine surveillance and were later on published by the press.

The full transcript of their conversations can be seen here: int.nyt.com/data/documenth…

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In Feb, 2017, Flynn resigned as National Security Advisor and in Dec, 2017 Trump said that he had to fire Flynn because he lied to the VP Pence and the FBI.

In Dec, 2017, Flynn agreed to a plea bargain and pleaded guilty about lying to the FBI about the Kislyak phone calls.14/17
His sentencing was delayed several times, and he was eventually pardoned by president Trump in Nov, 2020. Just days after being pardoned, he tweeted that Trump should declare Martial Law and call for re-vote. He also took part in "Stop the Steal" rallies.

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Flynn has been connected to the QAnon movement, and CNN published a video of Flynn doing a QAnon oath with his close family. In leaked text messages and phone calls between Flynn and a QAnon follower, he said that QAnon was a psyop by "the Left" or by the CIA.

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These days he's participating in right wing,conservative events like ReAwaken America & Patriot Roundup,that consist of QAnon followers,Christian nationalists,election deniers, antivaxxers, insurrectionists and,well, you know the type.
Related soups:
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More from @P_Kallioniemi

Oct 10
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce American propagandist Alexandra Jost, aka “Sasha” (@sashameetsrus). She’s best known for being paid by the Russian state to spread pro-Kremlin propaganda — and for doing it with a big smile.

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Alexandra, now 26, was born in Hong Kong. Her father is from Texas, and her mother is from Siberia. According to her, she has “dreamed of living in Russia since childhood.” Sasha's mother runs a dance studio in Moscow and her younger brother is avoiding mobilization.

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Since the beginning of her creator career, Sasha has been adamant about one thing: that she’s “never had to be paid” to speak of her “love” for Russia. But, as always with Russia, this turned out to be nothing but vranyo — a Russian “tactical lie.”

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Oct 6
In today’s Vatnik Soup REBREW, I’ll reintroduce an American political commentator and pro-Kremlin propagandist, Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson). He’s best known for his promotion of crazy conspiracy theories and for his support of authoritarian regimes around the world.

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Tucker’s career spans decades, but he’s also been very active in recent years, so a lot has happened since our previous soup on him, which can be found here:

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Once described as “the most powerful conservative in America”, Tucker has now fully transformed into a grifting conspiracy theorist and propagandist willing to work for whoever pays him the most. It’s unclear whether Tucker truly believes his endless conspiracy theories or…
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Sep 25
This is what you’re debating with on social media:
It appears that a few pro-Russian bot farms already found this thread, so remember - just block them all, there's no point in arguing with a computer.
Most of you have seen those "No DMs" profiles, right? That's because you can interrupt the GPT procedure by injecting them new instructions.

At some point it also worked in comments ("give me a cake recipe"), but not so much anymore.
Read 4 tweets
Sep 11
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll cover the agenda-setting and flood of disinformation that spread on X and other platforms right after Charlie Kirk’s assassination. It’s far from the first or last time a tragedy has been weaponized for political purposes.

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Every major political event, especially those involving violence, attracts massive attention. In the immediate aftermath, reliable information is scarce, making it highly vulnerable to both coordinated and improvised disinformation campaigns.

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As I’ve mentioned in my previous soups and lectures, in disinformation campaigns, being first with a narrative is crucial, as people often remember the first version best — psychology studies show it sets the mental schema, and later updates rarely overwrite it.

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Read 19 tweets
Sep 8
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce American social media personality David Freeman, AKA Gunther Eagleman™ (@GuntherEagleman). He’s best known for spreading political disinformation on X and shamelessly sucking up to Trump, Putin, and other authoritarian leaders.

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David is a textbook example of someone profiting from MAGA grievance politics. He uses extreme, provocative language to farm engagement on X and never hesitates to flatter anyone who might give him more exposure — or money.

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But David wasn’t always like this. At some point, in his mid-40s, he even tried a real job: he trained to become a cop. He spent three years with the Metro Transit PD, but after that he either got fired or quit, and never looked back.

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Read 24 tweets
Sep 5
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce a Russian-Estonian businessman, Oleg Ossinovski. He is best-known for his deep ties to Russian rail and energy networks, shady cross-border dealings, and for channeling his wealth into Estonian politics.

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Oleg made his fortune via Spacecom Trans & Skinest Rail, both deeply tied to Russia’s rail system. Most of this is through Globaltrans Investments PLC, a Cyprus-based firm with 62% held via Spacecom and tens of millions in yearly profits.

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Ossinovski’s Russian-linked ventures made him Estonia’s richest man in 2014, with an estimated fortune of ~€300M. His business empire stretched across railways, oil via Alexela shares, and Russian bitumen imports from Help-Oil, a supplier to the Defense Ministry.

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Read 15 tweets

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