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Russian forces not receiving combat bonuses in Ukraine: UK intelligence

The United Kingdom’s Defense Ministry said in an intelligence update on Sunday that Russian forces in Ukraine have likely not received combat bonuses, hampering morale.  

“Russian forces continue to suffer from morale and discipline issues in Ukraine,” the ministry said in a Twitter thread. “In addition to combat fatigue and high casualties, one of the main grievances from deployed Russian soldiers probably continues to be problems with their pay.” 

The Defense Ministry said that Russian troops receive a modest salary and a variety of bonuses and allowances, noting the combat bonuses have not been paid since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine. 

“This is probably due to inefficient military bureaucracy, the unusual legal status of the ‘special military operation’, and at least some outright corruption amongst commanders,” the ministry said. 

It added that Russia’s military has failed to provide deployed troops with “basic entitlements” such as appropriate uniforms, arms and rations, saying that this contributed to the military’s current “fragile morale.” 

The update comes amid concerns of potential nuclear disaster across the European continent due to ongoing shelling near the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant. Russian and Ukraine have blamed on one another. 

Recently, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi announced that the agency plans to keep two inspectors at the Russian-captured nuclear power plant.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which began in February, has killed thousands on both sides and displaced some 7 million Ukrainian citizens.

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Senate Democrat defends Biden speech: 'Democracy is at risk'

Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) on Sunday defended a primetime speech by President Biden last week, agreeing with the notion that U.S. “democracy is at risk.”

Citing the risk to her own safety on Jan. 6, 2021, Murray told CNN “State of the Union” anchor Dana Bash that Trump supporters were willing to use “brute force” to halt the peaceful transition of power and denounced notions of political violence.

“I believe that our democracy is at risk today. I was in the nation’s Capitol on January 6. I wasn’t able to escape. I was barricaded in an office. And I heard the pounding at the door, and I heard those who were outside of it willing to use brute force incited by President Trump to take over our country, to take over our democracy, to stop the transaction to a new presidency in a peaceful way, which is what a democracy is,” Murray said.

“[W]e have to get back to a point where we all say that brute force and incitement of that brute force, and the questions that the president and his followers continue to put out there about whether or not that election was legitimate incites that,” she said.

“And we still have people today saying there will be violence on the streets. That is not what a democracy is. And we all have to point that out and work to make sure we move towards a democracy and keep that democracy,” she added.

Biden in his speech on Thursday said that Trump’s influence on the Republican party and on the MAGA-wing of the GOP was “a threat to this country.”

Biden, speaking from Independence Hall in Philadelphia, tied Trump and other so-called “MAGA Republicans” to corrosive ideas like casting doubt on election results, spreading conspiracy theories and attacking law enforcement.

“Not every Republican, not even a majority of Republicans, are MAGA Republicans. Not every Republican embraces their extreme ideology,” Biden said. “But there’s no question that the Republican Party today is dominated, driven and intimidated by Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans. And that is a threat to this country.”

Biden’s remarks were lambasted by Republicans who have also called on him to apologize for saying that the MAGA philosophy was “semi-fascism.” In response to the pushback, White House officials defended criticisms that Biden’s speech was political, noting that defending democracy isn’t a partisan issue. 

Murray is running for re-election in November for her Senate seat. She currently holds a slight lead over her opponent, Tiffany Smiley (R), according to a new Trafalgar Group poll where more than 49 percent of respondents said they will support Murray and 46 percent of those surveyed said they will support Smiley.

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Raskin says he expects Pence to testify before Jan. 6 committee

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) on Sunday said he expects former Vice President Mike Pence to testify before the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.

“Vice President Pence was the target of Donald Trump’s wrath and fury and effort to overthrow the election on January 6, the whole idea was to get Pence to step outside his constitutional role, and then to declare unilateral lawless powers to reject Electoral College votes from the states,” Raskin, a member of the Jan. 6 committee, said on CBS “Face the Nation.” 

“I think he has a lot of relevant evidence, and I would hope he would come forward and testify about what happened,” Raskin said.

Pressed on options to force Pence to appear before the committee, Raskin said that a subpoena isn’t out of the question for Pence or any other potential witness, “but I would assume he’s going to come forward and testify voluntarily, the way the vast majority of people have.”

Pence said last month that he would consider an invitation to appear before the committee, but said he’d have to “reflect on the unique role” he was serving as then-second in command and the “unprecedented” move for a vice president to testify on Capitol Hill.  

The committee has long noted Pence as a key Jan. 6 figure, a target of former President Trump’s and his supporters during the Capitol riot. 

Trump pressured Pence to disregard Electoral College votes from Biden-won states and use his ceremonial role in the election certification process to help Trump to victory.

Some rioters in the Capitol that day called for the then-vice president to be hanged, and Pence’s security detail later told the committee that they feared for their lives during the rioting.

Raskin also said Sunday the committee is expected to release its much-anticipated report on its Jan. 6 findings by the end of this year.

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Biden adviser: 'MAGA agenda' has no place in our democracy

White House senior adviser Keisha Lance Bottoms on Sunday said the “hate-filled” MAGA agenda “has no place in a democracy,” echoing President Biden’s primetime address last week in which he labeled the political movement a threat to the U.S.

Bottoms told ABC’s “This Week” host Martha Raddatz that Biden called out former President Trump and his fierce supporters to highlight the dangers they pose.

“This MAGA Republican agenda, this hate-filled agenda … that we saw incite violence on our nation’s Capitol has no place in a democracy,” Bottoms said. “And if we are not intentional about calling it out, which is what the president did, then our country, everything that our country is built upon, is in danger.”

Biden last Thursday appeared to divide the GOP into two camps: mainstream Republicans and the former president’s MAGA supporters, a movement that he has previously compared to “semi-fascism.”

Republicans have largely decried the speech, calling Biden a “divider-in-chief” and the address a political ploy while Trump slammed Biden as an “enemy of the state.”

Around 70 million Americans voted for Trump in the 2020 election, raising concerns that Biden, who campaigned on unity, is further dividing and polarizing the nation with his rhetoric against Trump and a prominent GOP wing.

When posed this question by Raddatz, Bottoms noted that the president has worked with mainstream Republicans to pass a bipartisan bill on gun control over the summer and will continue to do so.

“What the president has said is that mainstream Republicans, independents, Democrats can all come together,” she said. “We’ve seen us come together to do what’s right on behalf of the American people.”

While some in the Republican Party have pushed back against Trump — notably Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and nine other House Republicans who voted to impeach him for the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol — the former president has retained a strong grip on the GOP.

The political leader has demonstrated his lasting strength in the GOP by pushing to unseat Republican opponents. All but two of the House Republicans who voted to impeach him have announced retirement or fallen in a primary against Trump-backed opponents, including Cheney.

Trump continues to push the false conspiracy theory the 2020 election was stolen and said as recently as last week that he might pardon Jan. 6 defendants who stormed the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to stop certification of the 2020 election.

Bottoms on Sunday told Raddatz the MAGA agenda has “been about distorting the truth” and “misleading people.”

“What the president has done as our commander in chief is he’s reminded us that democracies are fragile,” she said. “And if we are not intentional about preserving who we are as a country, if we are not intentional about reminding ourselves that there is a rule of law in this country, then we will be in danger.”

The Biden administration has also brushed off criticism for stationing Marines behind the president during an address in which he called political opponents extremists.

But Bottoms said the “president spoke optimistically about who we are as Americans.”

“We are the greatest nation in the world,” the senior White House adviser said Sunday, saying the speech is a “reminder that we have to be intentional about being the greatest nation in the world and that we have to call out hatred.”

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Raskin says Biden 'right to sound the alarm' on GOP threats to democracy

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said on Sunday that President Biden was “right to sound the alarm” about former President Trump and the MAGA wing of the Republican Party.

“Two of the hallmarks of a fascist political party are, one, they don’t accept the results of elections that don’t go their way. And two, they embrace political violence,” Raskin told moderator Major Garrett on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”

“And I think that’s why President Biden was right to sound the alarm … about these continuing attacks on our constitutional order from the outside by Donald Trump and his movement.” 

Raskin, a member of the House select committee investigating the Capitol insurrection, also said that Trump’s suggestion that the 2020 election be “rerun” is “totally outside of the Constitution,” adding that more than 60 courts have rejected Trump’s claims of election fraud. 

His remarks came after Garrett noted that Trump last week “said the 2020 election should be rerun, or he should be reinstated in office, and that if reelected in 2024, he would provide apologies and full pardons to those charged and or convicted for storming the Capitol on January 6.”

During a primetime address last Thursday, Biden referred to Trump and the MAGA-wing of the GOP as threats to democracy.

“Not every Republican, not even a majority of Republicans, are MAGA Republicans. Not every Republican embraces their extreme ideology,” he said. “But there’s no question that the Republican Party today is dominated, driven and intimidated by Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans. And that is a threat to this country.”

His remarks sparked pushback from a slew of GOP lawmakers.

“With all due respect Mr. resident, there’s nothing wrong with America’s soul,” Sen. Lindsey Graham wrote in a tweet. “The American people are hurting because of your policies. Rampant inflation. Out of control crime. Terrorism on the rise. Broken borders. Stop lecturing & change your policies before it’s too late.”

In response, White House officials rejected characterizations of the speech as political, saying defending democracy isn’t a partisan issue.

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House GOP campaign chief defends candidates toning down anti-abortion stance: 'I trust them'

Rep. Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) on Sunday defended GOP candidates who appear to have distanced themselves from former President Trump and their stance on abortion, saying he trusts them to know their districts and voters.

Emmer, the chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), on “Fox News Sunday” instead turned the table on Democrats, alleging the party that was trotting an “extreme” agenda on abortion.

“Good luck to them trying to defend their extreme position,” Emmer said. “I think our candidates know how to message that and there’ll be just fine in the midterms.”

The Washington Post last week reported that nine GOP candidates have scrubbed or changed their stances online regarding former President Trump or abortion.

In one example, Arizona GOP Senate candidate Blake Masters, who once described himself as “100% pro-life” with hardline anti-abortion stances, changed his website to attack his Democratic opponent and argue instead he does not support third trimester abortions.

The changes come after Republicans had two major defeats to Democrats in bellwether tests in New York and Alaska last month.

Democrats appear to be seeing ground shift their way after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the nearly 50-year constitutional right to abortion and the FBI search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in which the former president is under investigation for his handling of classified documents.

Emmer on Sunday disagreed Republicans were losing ground over abortion, telling anchor Mike Emmanuel the NRCC trusts candidates “to know their districts and know how they’re going to appeal to their voters.”

The GOP campaign chief said Trump was a “fantastic ally” and Republicans were in a good position to win the midterm elections and retake the House come November largely due to the direction of the economy.

“Money talks and money is painting a pessimistic future for Democrats,” he said.

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Trump’s ‘Dirty Dozen’ — 12 Republican candidates to keep an eye on

Donald Trump demonstrated exceptional political clout in the Republican primaries, with scores of candidates succeeding because they had the endorsement of the former president.

The general election will indicate whether that clout extends beyond the hard core. I’ve picked a dozen races that’ll test that.

The commonalities these “dirty dozen” share: They are in competitive contests in a year that should tilt Republican, were chosen over the preferences of establishment officials, are all election deniers (reiterating the Big Lie that the 2020 election — where Joe Biden won by 7 million votes — was fraudulent) and are embracing what were once considered fringe views.

Running for Senate

J.D. Vance, author of the best-selling memoir, “Hillybilly Elegy,” leapt to the top of the Ohio GOP primary after Trump’s endorsement. Once a harsh Trump critic, Vance has done a full 180. He charges the Biden administration’s support for Ukraine grows out of its opposition to Vladimir Putin, who “doesn’t believe in transgender rights.”

Herschel Walker, a former football star, had a professional sports relationship with Trump. Walker hadn’t lived in Georgia in decades, but cleared the field when Trump embraced him. Not conversant with issues, Walker explained the fallacy of the Democrats’ climate change initiatives, saying “Our good air decided to float over to China’s bad air. So when China gets our good air their bad air got to move. So it moves over to our good air space.”

Dr. Mehmet Oz, the TV doctor who peddled dubious medicinal cures, won the Pennsylvania Senate nomination — over hedge funds executive David McCormick — with Trump’s surprise endorsement. A New Jersey resident who moved to Pennsylvania earlier this year, Oz, in a social media video, said he was shopping at “Wegner’s.” There is no such store in Pennsylvania; he explained that sometimes he gets his children’s names wrong.

A fourth first-time candidate backed by Trump is Blake Masters, a protege of venture capitalist Peter Thiel running for John McCain’s old Senate seat in Arizona. He disassociates from the late GOP icon, declaring, “It’s not his Republican Party in Arizona anymore.” Masters has called for privatizing Social Security and a total abortion ban with no exceptions; for the general election, he slightly modified his stances.

Ted Budd was an obscure North Carolina congressman until Trump’s endorsement; then, he blew past former Gov. Pat McCrory. A gun store owner, Budd voted against the modest gun control bill that was supported by the state’s two GOP Senators. Budd has said the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol really “was nothing. It was just patriots standing up.”

Races for governor

In Maryland, Trumpite Dan Cox trounced the candidate supported by the state’s popular outgoing GOP Gov. Larry Hogan. Cox attended the Jan. 6 Capitol rally; when Vice President Mike Pence refused to alter the electoral college count, Cox tweeted, “Mike Pence is a traitor.”

Kari Lake, a longtime Phoenix TV anchor and once an Obama voter, went full MAGA and beat the establishment candidate supported by the governor and Mike Pence. She is a favorite of the radical right, appearing with people linked to the Q-Anon conspiracy and thanking a Nazi sympathizer for support.

Tim Michels, with Trump’s backing, defeated the once-favored former Wisconsin lieutenant governor, even though he has only lived in the state part-time. Michels, a businessman, said he might decertify the state’s 2020 election results — Biden won Wisconsin by more than 20,000 votes — even though that’s constitutionally impermissible.

Doug Mastriano, to the shock of Pennsylvania’s GOP establishment, easily won the nomination. The former Army officer attended the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol, but didn’t enter the building apparently. He campaigns as a Christian nationalist and espouses right-wing conspiracy theories.

The House

Donald Trump’s obsession to drive out of office the ten Republicans who voted to impeach him — at best only two will return — boosted decorated veteran Joe Kent, who defeated Jaime Herrera Beutler in Washington State. Although Nathan Gonzales’s “Inside Politics” rates this a “solidly Republican” seat, Kent’s hard right views and associations with white nationalists and the Proud Boys, a violence-prone hate group, could put it in play.

In Michigan, John Gibbs — with Trump’s backing — defeated another Republican who voted for impeachment. Gibbs has promoted crazy fringe conspiracies, like claiming that Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign engaged in satanic rituals.

Bo Hines, a former college football player fueled by Trump’s backing, scored an upset in a primary for an open North Carolina seat. The 27-year-old newcomer has called for defunding the FBI and for a federal ban on abortion with no exceptions.

Whatever happens to the runner-up in the last presidential election, Trumpism will remain the dominant force in the Republican party. If at least nine or ten of these candidates win in November, it will only tighten his hold.

If, however, most of the dirty dozen lose in what is supposed to be good GOP year, it will cause consternation and maybe even some rethinking in the party ranks.

Al Hunt is the former executive editor of Bloomberg News. He previously served as reporter, bureau chief and Washington editor for The Wall Street Journal. For almost a quarter century he wrote a column on politics for The Wall Street Journal, then The International New York Times and Bloomberg View. He hosts Politics War Room with James Carville. Follow him on Twitter @AlHuntDC.

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Democratic NJ governor says he'll back Biden in 2024

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) on Sunday said he will back President Biden in a 2024 reelection bid, the latest Democrat to announce support for the president.

“He’ll have no bigger backer than yours truly,” Murphy told “Fox News Sunday” host Mike Emanuel.

Biden, who earlier this year faced calls from some within his party to not seek another White House term, is now enjoying more support for reelection from Democrats amid improved job approval ratings.

Polling last week revealed about 40 percent of Americans approve of Biden, a significant jump that comes after Democrats passed the climate, tax and health care bill and other key legislation.

Biden holds a 6-point lead over former President Trump, 50 to 44 percent, in a hypothetical matchup, according to one recent poll, and would defeat the GOP leader if the election were held today.

Murphy said on Sunday Biden’s recent announcement to cancel up to $20,000 in student loan debt for some borrowers was another huge victory for the party.

“The American dream is alive and well in New Jersey,” he said.

“I think the president has had a heck of a run here. I saw him the other day and told him that,” he added. “Whether it’s Congress getting stuff passed that he had signed, his own leadership or sadly, for the wrong reasons of what the Supreme Court did with reproductive freedoms, there’s no question about it. The Democrats have momentum.”

–-Updated at 11:28 a.m.

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What the US can learn from Kenya's fight for democracy

Last month, we helped lead an International Election Observation Mission for Kenya’s presidential elections, sponsored by the International Republican Institute (IRI) and the National Democratic Institute (NDI), on whose boards we serve. At the time of our writing, William Ruto had narrowly edged out Raila Odinga, but court challenges to the results are still being worked out. 

While Kenya’s elections are once again disputed, they are being done so through legal channels and the democratic achievements of the Kenyan people are clear. The Kenyan Supreme Court is scheduled to rule on petitions challenging the presidential results tomorrow. 

Kenya has been a relative bastion of stability in a very difficult neighborhood. Surrounded by unrest and one-man rule in Sudan and South Sudan, rampant terrorism in Somalia, civil war in Ethiopia and dictatorship in Uganda, Kenya’s dedication to elections and multi-party politics is an inspiration to its people, the region and the continent. It’s also an inspiration to aspiring democracies all over the world.  

Kenya’s next president faces daunting problems: a large youth population with limited job opportunities, a crushing debt burden (encouraged by Chinese lending to fund large infrastructure projects) and pervasive corruption. Kenya’s democracy is far from perfect; voter registration and turnout declined in 2022, and post-election violence in 2007 left over 1,000 dead and hundreds of thousands displaced. The last presidential election in 2017 was annulled by the Supreme Court and had to be redone. Yet, despite these very real challenges, Kenyans voted and relished the opportunity to have a voice in their future.    

International observation serves to reinforce global support for credible elections around the world. Reflecting that elections are a process, prior to our deployment, NDI and IRI conducted missions to Kenya in May and July to assess the electoral context and preparations for elections. On the eve of the elections, we met with a wide array of stakeholders, including leading presidential candidates, members of the Independent Election Commission and the Supreme Court, civic society representatives, church groups, women’s organizations and independent citizen observers who were conducting a parallel vote tabulation. 

On Election Day this Aug. 9, we observed an impressive logistical undertaking with over 46,000 polling places across a country slightly larger than California and Florida combined. We witnessed staffers working through the night before the election to ensure polling places would open on time. We saw long lines in Kibera, the section of the capital of Nairobi that is Africa’s largest slum, and all across the region. Still, voters patiently waited to have their identification verified before receiving their ballots and voting.

Kenya’s election had both 21st-century cutting-edge biometric real-time voter identification, and old-style manual counting where ballots were dumped on makeshift tables for tabulation (manual hand counting) well into the night.

We witnessed firsthand women voting, as well as women candidates competing for high offices like the vice president and governors of their respective regions or constituencies. While women candidates faced harassment and threats of physical violence, Kenya elected a historic number of female governors  in addition to voting women into 26 Parliamentary seats and three Senate seats. Still, while close to half of voters are women, Kenya’s government has never held many women. The country is far from achieving the “two-thirds gender principle” enacted in order to increase women’s representation in government. 

Ruto campaigned on a classic “rags to riches story” —  roadside chicken seller risen to wealthy businessman and current deputy president. His slogan, “Every Hustle Matters,” was designed to appeal to young Kenyans who rely on the vast underground economy. Odinga was a known commodity for Kenyan voters, having served as prime minister and previously run for president four times. Repeatedly jailed without trial under the Moi dictatorship in the 1980s, Odinga was endorsed by current President Kenyatta over Kenyatta’s previous running mate and serving Deputy President Ruto — a House of Cards-like twist of the type that dominates Kenyan politics.   

Why does far away Kenya matter for the U.S. with so many of our own challenges? It is the economic powerhouse of East Africa, anchoring the western Indian Ocean where China increasingly flexes its muscle and expands its military footprint. It was in Kenya (and neighboring Tanzania) where Osama bin Laden attacked the U.S., bombing our embassies in 1998, and killing 213 people in Nairobi (and 11 in Dar es Salaam). Kenya has been a loyal partner in countering Islamic extremism, serving as a diplomatic mediator in regional conflicts, and providing safe haven for refugees fleeing turmoil, including the horrific 1994 genocide in Rwanda and the tragic ongoing conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Kenya was also one of the most vocal critics of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. As one of the most important countries in the dynamic African continent, Kenya’s political direction and democratic stability are matters of great concern all over the globe. 

As we repeatedly told our Kenyan interlocutors, elections are about more than just winning — they are also about accepting defeat. We know this all too well from personal experience. Losing elections with grace a dignity after the votes are counted and legitimate court challenges exhausted is every bit as important as a level campaign playing field, secret voting and transparent vote counting. 

Whatever the final outcome, the real winners in Kenya’s election are the voters who had a voice in choosing their leader. And the long-term winners are the citizens of every democracy on earth struggling to implement and maintain this most precious and most delicate of governing systems. That includes the United States. 

Donna Brazile is a member of the board of the National Democratic Institute (NDI) and the former interim chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee. Randy Scheunemann is vice chair of the board at the International Republican Institute (IRI) and strategic counselor at the Halifax International Security Forum. The views expressed are their own. 

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DCCC chair says Democratic candidates ready to campaign with Biden after legislative victories

Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-N.Y.), who serves as chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, on Sunday said Democratic candidates are ready to campaign with President Biden ahead of the November midterm elections after notching several legislative victories on their belts this summer.

“You better believe we’re gonna stand with the president and say we passed in a bipartisan way better roads, better bridges, better healthcare for our veterans,” the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman told “Fox News Sunday” anchor Mike Emanuel.

“That’s the kind of agenda that we’re standing in support of, and you see it working in the polls,” he added.

Democrats appear to be embracing Biden following a year of approval ratings that have hovered below 40 percent coupled with sky-rocketing inflation. Democrats have been celebrating the passing of a climate, tax and healthcare bill last month, a healthcare bill for veterans exposed to toxins and legislation to boost the semiconductor chip industry to make Americans more competitive in a crucial economic sector.

Democrats are optimistic about two months out from the midterm elections, which will decide which party controls Congress.

Last month, a special election for a House seat in New York and a House race in Alaska both saw Democrats come out on top against their GOP opponents in bellwether tests for November.

While Republicans were forecast to retake the House earlier this year amid a 40-year high inflation rate, the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of abortion rights in June is largely thought to have shifted the momentum back to Democrats.

Maloney on Sunday said Democrats have also been successful under Biden’s watch, lowering prescription drug costs through the Inflation Reduction Act and imposing a minimum tax on large corporations and passing a historic investment in climate change through the key legislation.

The top Democratic lawmaker said celebrations were in order for the party.

“You better believe Democrats are going to celebrate that,” he said. “So are the voters, and that’s why we’ve we’ve been winning in special elections from Alaska to New York.”

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