Is America for sale? It sure looks like it to me. I saw a picture of Trump holding a 5-million-dollar gold card that would act as a type of green card that would let people migrate to the United States and could act as a gateway to citizenship for the rich. Trump was asked if people like Russian Oligarchs could purchase the card. Trump's answer was “Yeah, possibly. Hey. I know some Russian oligarchs that are very nice people.” I would have asked if the Trump administration cared where the money came from. There are a lot of criminals that are worth a whole lot more than 5 million dollars. Could this be just a way to give foreign crime cartels an easier path to come to the United States?

With just about everything for sale in America, including our government.  It is unsurprising that China and Russia control a big chunk of it. China and Russia have found their way into the lives of pretty much every American. With ownership comes influence, and with influence comes power. Other countries will never invest in America to further our democracy and enhance our freedoms, they invest for power and influence. We invest in other countries for the same reason, power and influence. Businesses invest for business reasons and not because they want to become Americans, so the concept of investing in America is flawed from the beginning. Businesses invest in something because they see profit. Governments invest in something for influence. We are no different. Did we invade Iraq because of terrorism? That is what we were told. What we were told turned out to be a lie, Iraq was not a country that supported terrorism. Iraq worked hard to keep Al-Qaida out of their nation. So why did we attack Iraq?  I believe it was for influence in the Middle East because of oil. What I believe is it is a dangerous game that will always lead to conflict.

My question is how much does Russia have invested in America? We can look up the ownership and influence Russian oligarchs have. Most of that information can be found on the internet. But what about the influence that Russia has over our politicians? Senator Ron Johnson was warned by the FBI he was a target for Russian disinformation in 2020. Johnson at the time was the chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. He used that position to amplify charges that then-Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden had during his previous tenure as vice president, alleging he inappropriately sought to influence affairs in Ukraine. It was reported these charges were based on Russian disinformation. In the spring of 2021, Johnson stated to the Washington Post “Regarding reports that I received an FBI briefing warning me that I was a target of Russian disinformation, I can confirm I received such a briefing in August of 2020”. He was briefed that he was warned he was being used by the Russians but ran with the false information anyway. Lev Parnas, the Ukrainian businessman who worked very closely with many Trump associates to smear Biden eventually went to prison for his crimes testified before Congress that all the lies about Biden had come from Russia.

Once you lie for a foreign country for political advantage does that foreign country now own you? Is that what we are seeing more and more today is the result of foreign ownership in our government? Parnes was invited to the House Oversight Committee Investigation into the Biden family. He stated “The American people have been lied to, by Donald Trump, Rudy Giuliani, and various cohorts of individuals in government and media positions. They created falsehoods to serve their own interest knowing it would undermine the strength of our nation. Congressman Pete Sessions, then-Congressman Devin Nunes, Senator Ron Johnson, and many others understood they were pushing a false narrative. The same goes for John Soloman, Sean Hannity, and media personnel, particularly with Fox News, who used this narrative to manipulate the public ahead of the 2020 elections, Sadly, they are still doing this today as we approach the 2024 election. The only information ever pushed on the Bidens and Ukraine has come from one source and one source only, Russia and Russian Agents”. That testimony is Congressional testimony that will survive forever. It should have been a bigger story. It should have been a show-stopper. I ask again, if you lie for a foreign country does that country now own you?

Is that what we see with the Trump administration when it comes to Ukraine? Is our current Executive Branch owned by the Russians? The Communists always said that it was our capitalistic corruption that would be our downfall. Volodymyr Zelenskyy showed up for what he hoped would have been positive talks with Trump. He was prepared to sign a mineral deal that would give the United States a stake in Ukraine’s future and maybe some security for Ukraine. Instead, he was attacked verbally by Trump and Vance. I have heard many times Zelenskyy thanking the United States for all of their support for his democracy yet Vance said that he was not thankful enough. What was Zelenskyy supposed to do? Show up at the White House with flowers and candy ready to kiss the ring or maybe more appropriately kiss their asses? Of course, Zelenskyy pushed back but was then told he was being disrespectful. There was no way Zelenskyy was going to leave with anything. You could tell that was decided before the meeting even started.  It was an embarrassing day for the nation and it was witnessed by the entire world. In Trump's infinite wisdom, he did this as it was being broadcast live around the world. There is a digital record of his cruelty and ignorance that will last forever. The really sad thing was that Trump had not done anything for Ukraine for them to even thank him for. Trump has only been in office for 6 weeks so there wasn’t even any time to put together a package. That is why I state that the decision was made long before Zelenskyy showed up for the meeting. Trump stated that he gave Ukraine javelins but to be truthful I think that was just another Trump lie.

I was embarrassed for our nation. Some people would say that I should just leave if I am that embarrassed. I am not the one that has changed. I am not the one who has forsaken the vision that was our founding fathers. I am not the one that is owned by a foreign power. Instead, I will stay and write for our democracy.