Pekka Kallioniemi Profile picture
Aug 6 21 tweets 11 min read Read on X
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll cover the autocratic concept of “Good Tsar, Bad Boyars”: the idea that the leader is wise and just, but constantly sabotaged by corrupt advisors. This narrative shields the ruler from blame, and it’s used by both Putin and Trump today.

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The phrase “Good Tsar, Bad Boyars” (Царь хороший, бояре плохие), also known as Naïve Monarchism, refers to a long-standing idea in Russian political culture: the ruler is good and benevolent, but his advisors are corrupt, incompetent and responsible for all failures.

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From this perception, any positive action taken by the government is viewed as being an accomplishment of the benevolent leader, whereas any negative one is viewed as being caused by lower-level bureaucrats or “boyars”, without the approval of the leader.

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This narrative helps protect the leader from criticism by shifting blame to his subordinates. It originates from the Russian empire, but it was also used extensively by Soviet leaders (Khrushchev’s secret speech was the shocking exception) and now by Vladimir Putin.

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In the Soviet Union, the idea of the “good leader misled by bad advisors” dominated. Under Stalin’s Great Purge, victims would write him “Comrade Stalin, there’s been a terrible mistake”, believing he’d fix it if only he knew — but he was usually the one who ordered it.

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Since Putin rose to power in 1999, the “good Tsar, bad boyars” idea has shaped his public image. He presents himself as a just leader undermined by corrupt officials, often humiliating them publicly to show he’s above the system.

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Even the 2023 Wagner rebellion was initially based on the “good Tsar, bad boyars” idea. Prigozhin claimed Putin was misled into invading Ukraine by corrupt elites, viewing him as a well-meaning leader deceived by untrustworthy oligarchs and incompetent generals like Shoigu.

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In the US, a version of this myth surrounds Trump. Supporters see him as a lone fighter betrayed by corrupt insiders: deep state, fake Republicans, globalists… His “drain the swamp” slogan reinforced the image of a pure leader surrounded by disloyal, self-serving elites.

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When policies fail or scandals hit, Trump blames others. Even close allies like Mike Pence and William Barr were quickly cast as traitors. Trump himself stays “clean and pure” while those around him are labeled weak, corrupt, or disloyal.

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Trump often turns on the very “bad boyars” he personally appointed. He repeatedly threatened to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell for not aligning with his economic messaging, despite having nominated him in 2017 and once calling him a “good man.”

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Trump went through people quickly in his first term, and by 2018, nearly half of top White House roles had already changed. Today, almost no one from his original inner circle remains. Many former allies have either distanced themselves or become targets of his attacks.

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In his second term, Trump surrounds himself exclusively with loyalists. MAGA-aligned think tanks like the Heritage Foundation support this model, calling for mass firings, loyalty tests, and full presidential control over the federal bureaucracy from day one.

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Project 2025 outlines this plan clearly: expand presidential power, purge civil servants, replace judges who block Trump’s executive orders. The aim is a government where qualifications or constitutionality don’t matter, only loyalty does. America’s own “Tsarist” model.

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Trump’s cult-like status among the MAGA base ensures that anyone he fires or disowns is instantly recast as a traitor. His supporters rarely question him. Instead, they redirect blame to the “bad boyars,” reinforcing his image as a wise, benevolent, and infallible leader.

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Like in Russia, the goal is to build a leader-centered system where the president is never to blame. If anything fails, it’s the boyars — often podcasters, pundits, political allies or kids with little experience in the jobs they’re handed.

The Tsar is always good.

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Meanwhile, back in Russia, the “Good Tsar” system demands total loyalty. Even top officials can’t freely resign. Elvira Nabiullina, head of the Central Bank, reportedly tried to quit after the Ukraine invasion, but Putin refused, forcing her to stay.

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In Putin’s system, loyalty is expected indefinitely. Those who fail or fall out of favor are often arrested, or they die under suspicious circumstances. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has also been rumored to have asked to resign multiple times, only to be blocked by Putin.
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The Boyars now don’t get a choice, they HAVE to stay and be bad for the Tsar to be good. This serves a dual purpose: it makes Putin appear more moderate, and protects them by being too unhinged to be a serious alternative to the Tsar. Sidekicks like Lavrov and Medvedev…

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… reinforce Putin’s Good Tsar status through their blunders. They make provocative statements or extreme, often absurd threats, like nuclear war or invading Poland. Putin then steps in, the voice of reason, calms his boyars down, makes them apologize.

The Tsar is Good.

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To conclude: both Trump and Putin use the “Good Tsar, Bad Boyars” model to build a system where blame is never theirs. Failures are pinned on advisors, bureaucrats, or made-up enemies. Successes, real or staged, are credited solely to their strength, wisdom, and leadership.
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The 2nd edition of “Vatnik Soup — The Ultimate Guide to Russian Disinformation” is officially out!

You can order your copy here:
vatniksoup.com/en/books/

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More from @P_Kallioniemi

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
Sep 2
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce a Swiss/French writer, Alain Bonnet, aka Alain Soral (@officielsoral). He’s best known for his rabid antisemitism and for his pathetic support for all the worst authoritarian regimes from Russia to North Korea.

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Alain’s childhood was problematic, as his father has been characterized as a “narcissistic pervert” who beat his children and did jail time for fraud. Alain himself has said he was “programmed to be a monster.” Born Alain Bonnet, he took the stage name of his sister,…

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… actress Agnès Soral. She wasn’t too happy about this, commenting “How would you like to be called Agnès Hitler?”. Like many grifters, he became a pick-up/seduction artist writer, à la late Gonzalo Lira, writing books and even making a B-movie, “Confessions d’un dragueur”.
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Read 23 tweets
Aug 18
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll explain the Alaska Fiasco and how it marks the peak of Trump’s two-year betrayal of Ukraine. What was sold as “peace talks” turned into a spectacle of weakness, humiliation, empty promises, and photo-ops that handed Putin exactly what he wanted.

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Let’s start with the obvious: Trump desperately wants the gold medal of the Nobel Peace Prize, mainly because Obama got one. That’s why he’s now LARPing as a “peace maker” in every conflict: Israel-Gaza, Azerbaijan-Armenia, India-Pakistan, and of course Ukraine-Russia.

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Another theory is that Putin holds kompromat — compromising material such as videos or documents — that would put Trump in an extremely bad light. Some have suggested it could be tied to the Epstein files or Russia’s interference in the 2016 US presidential election.

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Read 25 tweets

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