The Heart of Corruption

I have a great essay on the need to regulate internet companies – and you’ll see it eventually.  But today I woke up (very late) to listen to Ambassador Yovanovitch’s testimony.  What she is saying raises a more important issue.

The Fall of Communism

The “command economy” theory of Soviet Communism meant that the national government controlled industry, production, pricing and employment.  There was total government monopoly and ownership of all production.  Each step of the process was governed: from growing trees, to harvesting lumber, to pulp, to toilet paper, to wholesale, to retail sales in the government store.  The “Soviet” controlled it all.  

In the Soviet Union, the lack of controls outside of the government created an environment of corruption.  The Party members got the benefits, the money, and the goods.  Power in the Party meant a better life, better services.  Those outside the Party were left out of all of those “perks”.  Life was hard.

When the Soviet Union fell, the government “gave up” all of that control.  It was a fire sale, as if General Motors, Exxon Mobil, Apple and all of the other major US corporations were put up for sale at once.  The amount of wealth available was staggering, and at discounted rates.  Not surprisingly, the scramble to gain wealth drew people willing to do anything for money.  Billions of dollars were made and lost, and a new ruling class of corrupt billionaires called oligarchs gained control.

They needed the security structure of the nation to support their corrupt controls.  Who better to lead that structure, than a dedicated member of the Soviet secret police, the KGB?  Out of the chaos of the fall, Vladimir Putin emerged as the enforcer/strong man who could keep others in line.  Those who opposed to “his” oligarchs were in jail or exiled, or worse yet, dead.  Those that “went along,” got richer.

Ukraine

When the Ukrainian state of the Soviet Union found itself independent, the same scramble for wealth occurred.  Ukraine developed into a similar corrupt oligarchical society, with the richest aligning themselves with the Russians.  In 2014, the people of Ukraine rebelled against the Russian backed government, forcing then-President Yanukovych to flee to Moscow.  A new government took charge, and was immediately challenged by Russia.

The Russians seized the province of Crimea, and attacked the eastern provinces of Ukraine as well.  The tried to hide their soldiers in “generic” uniforms without insignia, pretending that it wasn’t their forces or their weapons.  But only those who were already corrupted by Moscow denied the identity of the Russian Army.

Flies to Honey

When corruption is endemic, as it was in both Russia and Ukraine, it is “honey” to the “flies” of corrupt actors throughout the world.  Paul Manafort was one such “fly,” coming to take advantage of the flow of money out of Ukraine.  He made millions of dollars trying to re-invent the image of Yanukovych, and allied himself with the Russian oligarch Dmitry Firtash.  Manafort tried to hide his millions from US taxation, and is now serving time in Federal Prison.

Rudy Giuliani, former Mayor of New York City, dipped into the corruption of Ukraine as well.  He was looking for “dirt” to use against President Trump’s opponents, but he was also looking for a big financial payoff.  Giuliani wanted the cooperation of the Ukrainian government, and thought he had it with the Prosecutor General, Lutsenko.  But Lutsenko was part of the corruption.  The official representative of the United States, Ambassador Yovanovitch, pressed for a change in the Prosecutor General’s office.  The new Ukrainian President, Zelenskiy, removed Lutsenko.

Lutsenko lost the “benefits” of his office, and was angry.  He turned to the “unofficial” representative of the President Trump and offered exactly what Giuliani wanted:  the appearance of “dirt” against Joe Biden.  Giuliani also found another corrupt removed Prosecutor, Viktor Shokin.  They swore affidavits to back the story Giuliani wanted to hear, that somehow the US Democratic Party hacked itself to “fix” the 2016 election, and that Joe Biden protected his son.

The Courage of One

Ambassador Yovanovitch stood against corruption.  She led the American effort to clean up Ukraine, in cooperation with the new Ukrainian administration.  But her efforts ran afoul of American corruption, as Rudy Giuliani pressed to have his disgraced “witnesses” taken seriously.  He wanted President Zelensky to open investigations.  That would be enough to give President Trump the “talking points” he needed for the 2020 campaign.

To get his story out, Giuliani had to get Yovanovitch out of the way.  The President wanted Giuliani’s dirt to “get out,” and without warning, the White House had Yovanovitch recalled.  Ironically, she left a ceremony honoring “Ukrainian Women Against Corruption,” and caught the next plane home.

An Honest Witness

The President of the United States attacked “Masha” Yovanovitch while she was testifying.  He tweeted that somehow a young “Masha” was responsible for US failures in Somalia, and now Ukraine.  There is a reason why the President himself feels the need to attack.

Ambassador Yovanovitch stood as an honest woman against the tide of both Ukrainian and US corruption.  She clearly expressed US goals across the world:  to encourage honesty, and democracy, and good government throughout the world.  Those goals aren’t US goals just because they’re “good,” but because they are “good” for the United States.  America holds ourselves out as an example to the world of what a free society can be, and what achievements it can do.  

If the Ambassador stands as the representative of “good” in America, where does that put Mr. Trump?  Perhaps he stands right beside his friend and political advisor, Roger Stone.  Stone was just found guilty on all counts of lying to Congress and obstructing justice.  Stone was the conduit from Wikileaks to the Trump Campaign, cooperating together on the use of the stolen DNC emails.  Emails that Russian intelligence stole.  Emails that the Trump campaign welcomed.   

Trump pressured the Ukrainian President to back Giuliani’s false allegations.  He withheld US funds to get what he wanted.

The heart of corruption is in the White House.