Putin Opponent Navalny Arrested, Faces More Than 3 Years in Prison
The political activist's fraud conviction has been called a "politically motivated" Kremlin plot to keep him from running for office.
Russia
The U.S. Government Spent Billions Failing To Defend Its Own Agencies From Cyberattacks
Plus: Google gets hit with another antitrust lawsuit, the U.S. falls in a new ranking of human freedom, and more...
The Same U.S. Government That Wants To Weaken Our Encryption Just Got Massively Hacked
Let's not weaken cybersecurity even more.
November 7 as Victims of Communism Day—2020
While I have long advocated using May 1 for this purpose, November 7 is a worthy alternative candidate, which I am happy to adopt if it can attract a broad consensus.
Snowden Announces Plans To Become Russian Citizen
The surveillance whistleblower has a child on the way and little sign a pardon is forthcoming.
Afraid of Foreign Election Meddling? Worry More About America's Sick Political Culture.
That so many Americans believe Biden and Trump are foreign-backed puppets is less testimony to the effectiveness of overseas scheming than to our own political culture.
Welcome to Chechnya
The documentary follows the harrowing efforts of activists running what is essentially a modern underground railroad to help at-risk gay citizens flee the country.
Belarusian Dictator Orders Polish and Lithuanian Borders Closed
So far, they don't seem to have actually closed the borders. But his threat probably has a different aim.
Putin Pulls an 'August Surprise' With His COVID-19 Vaccine Approval Announcement
Researchers and public health authorities around the world are alarmed by the speed and possible political motivation of the Russian vaccine timeline
Russia Lifts Ban on Telegram App
Two years of rule-flouting by elites and ordinary citizens show the unsustainability of top-down prohibition.
Victims of Communism Day 2020
Why May Day should be a day to honor victims of an ideology that took tens of millions of lives. But we should also be open to alternative dates if they can attract broader support.
Much of the FBI's Treatment of Mike Flynn Was Business as Usual, and That's the Scandal
Agents regularly attempt to catch suspects in lies to threaten them with prosecution, even when they can’t prove underlying crimes.
OPEC and Russia Agree To Cut Oil Production To Boost Prices
U.S. and Canada are supposed to agree to cut 5 million barrels
Russia Fights Coronavirus With Price Controls, Travel Restrictions
Vladimir Putin insists he has control of the situation. Don't believe him.
Russia's State Duma Votes To Reset Putin's Current Term, Allowing His Re-election in 2024
The amendment lets Putin stay in power until 2036.
Mikhail Mishustin Is an Unexpected Putin Pick for Prime Minister
An obscure former finance minister known for anti-corruption efforts, Mishustin is unlikely to threaten Putin's autocracy.
Russia's Track-and-Trace System Will Make Consumer Goods More Expensive
This new system won't benefit consumers, it'll just cause prices to increase and allow purchasing activity to be tracked by the government.
Vladimir Putin Is Not Reforming the State. He's Taking Power for Himself.
Putin has every intention of staying in charge.
Report Says FBI Snooping on Trump Campaign Aide Was Justified but Badly Mishandled
The FBI’s screw-ups when wiretapping Carter Page weren’t motivated by political bias. But that’s not exactly good news.
Trump Once Again Falsely Claims That Ukraine's President Has Exonerated Him of Abusing His Powers for Personal Gain
Given Ukraine's dependence on Trump's good will, Volodymyr Zelenskiy's comments about quid pro quos should be viewed as aspirational rather than factual.
Does It Matter That Impeachment Enthusiasts Are Lousy on Foreign Policy?
The Reason Roundtable panelists ask: Why so many hawks in the anti-Trump clump?
House Republicans Are Spreading 'Fictional Narrative' on Ukrainian Election Interference, Says Former Top White House Adviser
Russia is seeking to "delegitimize our entire presidency," Fiona Hill testified.
November 7 as Victims of Communism Day
While I have long advocated using May 1 for this purpose, November 7 is a worthy alternative candidate, if it can attract a broader consensus.
Trump's Cronies Meddling in Ukraine Undermined U.S. Goals, Says Ambassador Taylor
Plus: Involuntary commitment and "Indian-made" laws scrutinized, unconstitutional copyright bill passes, stranger danger panic, and more...
Tulsi Gabbard Conspiracy Theories Go Mainstream as Hillary Clinton Accuses the Candidate of Being Groomed by Russia
Gabbard called Clinton "the queen of warmongers, embodiment of corruption, and personification of the rot that has sickened the Democratic Party for so long."
Hillary Clinton Says Donald Trump Is an Illegitimate President and Tulsi Gabbard Is a Russian Tool
"She's a favorite of the Russians and they have a bunch of sites and bots and other ways of supporting her so far."
Trump Wishes Russia Luck in Syria as U.S. Bombs Its Own Bases and Erdogan Scoffs at Trump's Attempt to Make a Deal
Plus: U.K. drops porn age-verification plans, Congress grills tech leaders again, D.C. to hear testimony on prostitution decriminalizion, and more...
Would You Trust the Trump Administration to Teach Digital Literacy?
Plus: Trump murder meme makes waves, California requires abortion pill at public universities, and more...
Russia Sentences Israeli-American Traveler to 7.5 Years in Prison for 9 Grams of Pot
Naama Issachar, a 26-year-old woman who was arrested while catching a connecting flight in Moscow, was charged with drug smuggling.
V.I. Lenin, Psychedelic Mushroom
Friday A/V Club: A prank from the final days of the Soviet Union
The Puny Reality of Russian Election Meddling
If Moscow aimed to "sow chaos," it needed a much bigger budget.
Media Overhypes Russian Hacking, Again
Plus: human trafficking victims arrested in Florida, Beyoncé and Domino's targeted by disability discrimination suits, and more...
Democrats Revive Russia-Probe Drama With Live-Action Version of the Mueller Report
Plus: Kamala Harris jokes about starving prisoners, Trump sues over tax-return release, "Big Tech" witch hunt gets official, and more..
Russian Researcher Plans To Gene-Edit Embryos To Cure Deafness
Is that kind of gene-editing unethical?
No, Russian Bots Didn't Cause Trump's Poll Numbers To Increase 1 Percent Per 25K Retweets
Blaming Trump's election on the magical power of Russian Twitter bots is seductive because it excuses Americans for electing an obviously unqualified candidate.
When the Government Says You're Fake News
Countries across the world tackle political misinformation with authoritarian censorship.
Keep Expectations Low for Mueller's July Congressional Testimony
The special counsel has said he wants his report on Russian meddling in the election to speak for itself.
The Rights and Wrongs of Electoral Interference
Russia's interference in the 2016 election was wrong. But the reasons why are harder to pin down than you might think. Not all foreign interference in elections is unjustified. Far from it, in fact.
The Folly of Conflict With Russia Over Venezuela
There is at least one point on which Washington and Moscow find themselves at odds: Venezuela.
Media Must Drop the Political Shenanigans and Get Back to Scrutinizing the Powerful
Covering stories is too important to abandon for brazen partisan pandering-or wishful thinking.
The Mueller Media Hall of Shame: Podcast
Whose hysteria looks silliest in retrospect?
$25 Million Later, 3 Pundits Kind-of-Sort-of Change Their Minds on Collusion
Shockingly, most people are sticking to their guns.
Mueller's Conclusion: No Coordination Between Trump Campaign and Russia
As for obstruction evidence, he punts the matter to Congress.
As the Mueller Report Drops, a Transparency Fight Begins
How much will we see of the special counsel's report? And when?
Robert Mueller's Russia Report Is Finally Done, and We Still Know Nothing
At this point, making assumptions would be stupid.
Michael Cohen Slated to Link Donald Trump to Wikileaks Today: Reason Roundup
Plus: Using "fake news" to justify censorship, and Elizabeth Warren's childcare plan
Andrew McCabe Says He Opened Trump Probes in Case He Was 'Fired,' Confirms 25th Amendment Talks
"I was very concerned that I was able to put the Russia case on absolutely solid ground," the former FBI deputy director says.
Nastya Rybka Freed From Russian Jail After Vowing Not to Leak More Dirt on Deripaska
After months imprisoned in Thailand, the Belarusian citizen was deported to Moscow and promptly arrested on charges of luring people into prostitution.