# Why would Russia tinker with the presidential election? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [May 2, 2019, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375 "2019-05-02T17:41:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2019, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/121 "2019-05-03T21:15:53Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > … Russia is illegally funding Republicans through the NRA, and who knows what other methods. Republicans were proudly posing with a Russian spy as part of that operation, and no one seems to give a shit. … That was a tiny amount of money and the Kremlin doesn’t need the NRA to funnel funds to the GOP. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2019, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/122 "2019-05-03T21:23:49Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > That was a tiny amount of money and the Kremlin doesn’t need the NRA to funnel funds to the GOP. So being just a little bit traitorous is just peachy keen with you? ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2019, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/123 "2019-05-03T21:30:31Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > So being just a little bit traitorous is just peachy keen with you? [“Traitorous” is an interesting word choice for accepting donations from foreigners](https://www.vox.com/2016/8/25/12615340/hillary-clinton-foundation). ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2019, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/124 "2019-05-03T21:31:09Z")
Crime isn’t crime unless you crime hard enough. How hard you have to crime to crime depends on your political party. Trump standing in the middle of fifth avenue and shooting somebody wouldn’t be criming hard enough. Clinton breathing would be. ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2019, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/125 "2019-05-03T21:59:57Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > It was the right that politicized that ancient action. Got any points pertinent to _this_ century? There wouldn’t have been anything to “politicize” if Clinton didn’t make such a preposterous argument. Concerning topicality, do you feel that way about statues from the last century? Anyways I’m not expecting consistency in the expectation that history ceases being relevant because of some arbitrary number on a calendar. ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2019, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/126 "2019-05-03T22:03:25Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > [“Traitorous” is an interesting word choice for accepting donations from foreigners](https://www.vox.com/2016/8/25/12615340/hillary-clinton-foundation). Foreign aid to democrats, be it from nations or individuals, is for some reason never an issue. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2019, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/127 "2019-05-03T22:50:41Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > There wouldn’t have been anything to “politicize” if Clinton didn’t make such a preposterous argument. > > Concerning topicality, do you feel that way about statues from the last century? > > Anyways I’m not expecting consistency in the expectation that history ceases being relevant because of some arbitrary number on a calendar. Statues? ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2019, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/128 "2019-05-03T22:56:34Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Statues? My guess is he’s talking about how some confederate statues have been taken down because we’ve finally gotten around to deciding that racism isn’t really that awesome. How this is supposed to relate to the current argument is unclear. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2019, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/129 "2019-05-03T23:16:28Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > So if there’s authentic, videotaped evidence of Trump raping and murdering someone and the congress decides that it’s time to impeach him, impeachment in such a case is nothing more than a political machination? > > FTR, I’m not saying that there is such evidence or that even as odious as Trump he is that he’s capable of such a crime - just a hypothetical. I don’t think he has the stomach for murder. He’d have others do it in a second, sure, but with his own little dollhands? No way. He’s on tape admitting that he’s committed sexual assault several times, though. ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2019, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/130 "2019-05-03T23:19:27Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > My guess is he’s talking about how some confederate statues have been taken down because we’ve finally gotten around to deciding that racism isn’t really that awesome. How this is supposed to relate to the current argument is unclear. Aside from pandering, virtue signaling, and attempting to continue to push “that’s offensive and that’s traumatizing” why is it ok to politicize that stuff from the last century? ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2019, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/131 "2019-05-03T23:24:41Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > Aside from pandering, virtue signaling, and attempting to continue to push “that’s offensive and that’s traumatizing” why is it ok to politicize that stuff from the last century? I stand agog and reject this stupid hijack. At the same time! I’m doing two things at the same time. Admire me. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/132 "2019-05-04T00:26:29Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > Aside from pandering, virtue signaling, and attempting to continue to push “that’s offensive and that’s traumatizing” why is it ok to politicize that stuff from the last century? Because it’s the right thing to do. ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/133 "2019-05-04T03:40:01Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > I stand agog and reject this stupid hijack. At the same time! I’m doing two things at the same time. Admire me. Congratulations. But since when is answering someone’s question the so-called ‘hijack’? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/134 "2019-05-04T04:36:01Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > There is no evidence, _none_, that President committed a capital offense. I predict this will be the motto of the Trump Presidential Library. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/135 "2019-05-04T12:33:14Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > Aside from pandering, virtue signaling, and attempting to continue to push “that’s offensive and that’s traumatizing” why is it ok to politicize that stuff from the last century? Because people in this century are using them as support to continue holding 19th century social ideas. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-T377A using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/136 "2019-05-04T13:38:36Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > There is no evidence, _none_, that President committed a capital offense. How do you know this? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/137 "2019-05-04T14:00:19Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > I predict this will be the motto of the Trump Presidential Library. Worst. Library. Evah. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/138 "2019-05-04T14:45:13Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > Worst. Library. Evah. But the only library with a scratch-and-sniff porn section. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/139 "2019-05-04T14:59:12Z")
… and a McDonald’s. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375/140 "2019-05-04T15:02:51Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > Aside from pandering, virtue signaling, and attempting to continue to push “that’s offensive and that’s traumatizing” why is it ok to politicize that stuff from the last century? > [@DrFidelius](#): > > Because people in this century are using them as support to continue holding 19th century social ideas. Er, you missed **octopus** ’ confession that the statues have nothing whatsoever to do with memorializing war heroes (in which case they would have been erected in the century _before_ last), but rather were petulant tantrum totems in response to being made to respect the rights of melanin-enhanced citizens (starting around the middle of last century). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-russia-tinker-with-the-presidential-election/833375.md?page=8)