Russian Bots Are Starting to Attack the Republican Party

[workinclasszero]

Russian Bots Are Starting to Attack the Republican Party
BY CHRIS RIOTTA ON 8/7/17 AT 12:55 PM

Russian-linked bots and trolls have caused a surge in use of the hashtag #ResignPaulRyan on Twitter over the last 48 hours, just as the Republican speaker of the House was returning to his home state of Wisconsin for a month-long respite from Washington, D.C.

The unusual boost in Russian bots targeting a Republican lawmaker was first observed by the German Marshall Fund’s Alliance for Securing Democracy, created after the 2016 presidential election to “defend against, deter, and raise the costs on Russian and other state actors’ efforts to undermine democracy and democratic institutions.”

Twitter bots linked to Russia and other foreign adversaries have typically fueled support of Trump’s agenda on social media, with nearly half of the president’s followers appearing to be fake or spam accounts, as Newsweek previously reported.

http://www.newsweek.com/russian-bots-attacking-republican-party-paul-ryan-mcmaster-breitbart-647528

[SweetieD]

1. You can often tell that these bots don't have a good or basic understanding of how government works.

[marybourg]

11. And most real people do?

[Quixote1818]

2. Interesting. Guess Trump could not control his flock and so Russia no longer favors the GOP

I wonder what they have on the GOP they haven't released yet?

[workinclasszero]

4. They still favor Trump though

I guess now that Trump was forced into keeping sanctions on Putin all they have left is to prop up Twitler and drive a wedge between him and the thug party.

Still on the attack against democrats no doubt.

Keep the US weak, divided and in chaos for the next 4 to 8 years.

[BigmanPigman]

7. That's not what I heard on CNN in the wee hours.

Apparently the Russian citizens had favored the fake prez until the sanctions bill. Now they "have lost hope that he will work with Putin." They also said that he is acting like every other president now and that he is weak and allowed Congress to control him. Russian propaganda has had a hand in this.

Are they aiming at Ryan and the GOP Congress as punishment for the sanctions bill? Suddenly I have a warm pleasant feeling coming over my body. Oh, I know what it is....karma for the GOP! Karma Putin style.

[Igel]

13. Their favoring the GOP was a kludge.

Many ignore the intelligence reports.

They hear "blah-blah-blah-Russia-blah-blah-blah-Russia-blah-blah-blah-Russia supported Trump blah-blah-blah-blah" and remember, "Russia! Russia! Russia supported Trump!"

It makes all Russian politics local to the US. It's yet another kind of American exceptionalism. Trump was goal #3, a late addition to the agenda, and one of opportunity.

[lpbk2713]

3. EOH

Equal Opportunity Hackers

[Xolodno]

5. Wondering if that was going to happen.

They have to keep the Chaos going in the US electorate, so while everyone is hampered domestically, internationally, they have more influence.

[L. Coyote]

6. Whose Russian bot army, Trump's or Putin's?

When bots make mistakes, they all make the same mistake at the same time. Interesting.

[bettyellen]

8. I'm guessing Trump loves these bots too. Ironic the GOP looked the other way?

[L. Coyote]

16. Trump controlled these bots. They were repeating Jared's tweets.

The GOP wasn't looking the other way at all, they were in control of the bots, including those outsourced to Russia and other places.

[LisaL]

9. Russians might be pissed since sanctions haven't been lifted.

[Coventina]

10. Not only not lifted, but even more put in place.

I think possibly Putin's trolls don't understand that in our system, the Executive branch doesn't hold absolute power.

(thank god/dess!)

[TNLib]

12. If you lay down with dogs you get up with fleas.

nt

[dreamland]

14. Found out he was weak.

They have no use for tRUMP now because of the sanctions bill.
dumRump who claims, "I will make our relations with Russia better", lied again.

[TrollBuster9090]

15. "The unusual boost in Russian bots targeting a Republican lawmaker "

Why's that 'unusual?' Apparently it's now NORMAL for Russian bots to attack Democratic lawmakers, but unusual when they start attacking Republican lawmakers.

[flibbitygiblets]

17. Nearly half of tRump's Twitter followers are bots. Twitter? You gonna fix that or what?

I call for a total Twitter revolt (boycott) until this problem is resolved once and for all.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

18. Maybe they'll start taking Russian interferance in the election seriously now.

Nah.

[hurl]

19. All part of the GOP plan...

My opinion is that these bots are completely welcomed by the GOP. The GOP, of course, WANTS Trump to be labeled as some kind of one-off outsider, completely at odds with the GOP, so that they can safely say, "He's not one of us. He is something separate from us, so don't hold us to any consequences arising from his actions."

We, on the other hand, have to do everything in our power to tie Trump to the GOP and not let these 'bots' create some artificial and politically expedient division between Trump and the GOP. We need to be consistently communicating that Trump IS the GOP, and the GOP IS Trump. Tie them together, because that is reality.