OT Brittney Griner

[BigKari]

What we’re seeing in this country right now is the scratching and clawing of a political party that is being left behind. Just 15 short years ago, ~54% of the US population were White Christians. That number is now at ~44%. That is a very good thing from my perspective, as it is the white Christians who are leading their side of the culture war and doing the vast majority of the scratching and clawing. This is no more evident than in the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe. The White Christians maintained a pocket of power and overstepped with their influence by causing an extremely publicly unpopular decision to go through. So now Republicans are like the dog who caught the car. You can’t afford to do unpopular shit when your numbers are declining. If that 44% gets down to 35% over the next decade or 2 like I think it will, then this country will finally be essentially free of the shackles of that awful party, especially when combined with the growing influence of Gen Z and the political participation of the generation that follows, which will likely be another liberal dominated generation.

Liberals have won the culture war as it stands today and conservatives have zero solutions for the supposed problems a liberal leaning society has created (the problem is of course the Republicans who obstruct progress) and we will have our way. And I will personally enjoy all the crying and bitching from those who feel “left behind”. Truth is, they couldn’t keep up with a changing world. If you become less able to compete in society as society becomes more equitable, then that’s a you problem. It’s not “White Replacement Theory”. It’s “you suck at life and blame your problems on others”. We are not a white nation, and we are not a Christian nation. Those that want it to be that way are losing, and they are losing bad. I’m excited about what’s to come for the country as religion and the hatred it breeds is slowly being defeated.

 

[TheDude73]

That is so cool. Like Jason Bourne.

Those were good movies!

Anxious to see the next MI, however. I have a bit of a "spy movie" itch that needs scratching often (although I don't care much for 007 flicks...all to predictable).

 

[LineSkiCat14]

What we’re seeing in this country right now is the scratching and clawing of a political party that is being left behind. Just 15 short years ago, ~54% of the US population were White Christians. That number is now at ~44%. That is a very good thing from my perspective, as it is the white Christians who are leading their side of the culture war and doing the vast majority of the scratching and clawing. This is no more evident than in the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe. The White Christians maintained a pocket of power and overstepped with their influence by causing an extremely publicly unpopular decision to go through. So now Republicans are like the dog who caught the car. You can’t afford to do unpopular shit when your numbers are declining. If that 44% gets down to 35% over the next decade or 2 like I think it will, then this country will finally be essentially free of the shackles of that awful party, especially when combined with the growing influence of Gen Z and the political participation of the generation that follows, which will likely be another liberal dominated generation.

Liberals have won the culture war as it stands today and conservatives have zero solutions for the supposed problems a liberal leaning society has created (the problem is of course the Republicans who obstruct progress) and we will have our way. And I will personally enjoy all the crying and bitching from those who feel “left behind”. Truth is, they couldn’t keep up with a changing world. If you become less able to compete in society as society becomes more equitable, then that’s a you problem. It’s not “White Replacement Theory”. It’s “you suck at life and blame your problems on others”. We are not a white nation, and we are not a Christian nation. Those that want it to be that way are losing, and they are losing bad. I’m excited about what’s to come for the country as religion and the hatred it breeds is slowly being defeated.

Where to even begin with this lol.

All I will say is.. I wouldn't count on the LatinX vote to go in your favor. They aren't voting for pro-abortion and gender issues. If your "side" was smart, they'd stop where they are at.. but they won't. You're going to push the progressive ideas too far and we've seen that moderates are jumping ship, ESPECIALLY Latinx voters.

 

[Cawood86]

View embedded media

She checked all the boxes for the imbeciles in that administration.

 

[MegaBlue05]

Yay political shit.

My take:
Nobody on this planet should ever be jailed for cannabis possession in 2022. It’s a plant.

Also, when entering a shithole country as a guest, it’s best to obey all local laws and customs. If you don’t like said laws and customs, don’t visit said country.

Red team good. Blue team bad. Blue team good. Red team bad.

 

[BigKari]

Where to even begin with this lol.

All I will say is.. I wouldn't count on the LatinX vote to go in your favor. They aren't voting for pro-abortion and gender issues. If your "side" was smart, they'd stop where they are at.. but they won't. You're going to push the progressive ideas too far and we've seen that moderates are jumping ship, ESPECIALLY Latinx voters.

First of all stop with the goofy “Latinx” stuff, nobody talks like that. Yeah the messaging has worked in Florida and Republicans have done well recently in gaining votes from Latino and Hispanic communities. The democrat party has learned (a bit slow) that they need to get out ahead of the propaganda and misinformation reaching those communities. Much was invested into those misinfo campaigns by Republicans and they got a good ROI from it. It won’t be so easy for them to do that moving forward. So that’s not a worry for me.

The numbers will look worse and worse for Republicans over the next 20 years. Stripping freedoms and attempting to overthrow elections have always been the last gasp efforts when the powerful start quickly losing control. The only way the libs don’t win is if the Republicans throw the whole system out. And that’s exactly why some of them want to throw the whole system out in favor of theocratic fascism. Shit we even had a Matt Walsh Twitter post in this very thread. The Nazis are right here among us.

 

[TheDude73]

She checked all the boxes for the imbeciles in that administration.

In all fairness, Whelan only checks 2 or 3 boxes for the R party:

Supported Donald Trump
US Marine
Is straight (as far as we know...may come out of prison different! haha!)

And I agree that Griner does fit up with the demographics the current administration likes to use for political brownie points with their base (black, gay female), which supports my earlier statement that politicians, regardless of party, are all in it for PR that might get them reelected over trying to make the US a better place for all political ideaologies.

But as I posted above, there's more context to Whelan than people either know or are willing to talk about. The dude was court-martialed from the USM due to larceny. He's lied about being a cop in Michigan, and has lied about having a bachelor's and master's degrees (and he did so under oath during some depositions). Was he spying for the US under the guise as a BorgWarner automotive IT security specialist? Who knows. But one must question why he might have needed to travel so often to Russia as an IT security specialist when most IT folks enjoy remote work and can do a ton of their jobs without leaving home, on more secure networks than what he'd probably get in Russian hotels.

Imagine the outcry, though, from African American females (or females in general), had the US Government managed to trade for a white US marine and left Griner behind! Frankly, the government should have done more to trade BOTH Whelan and Griner for this Russian terrorist. That would have been more of a brownie point to show an administration that's open to help everyone regardless of party affiliation. But it's always about the party base over America as a whole.

 

[TheDude73]

Yay political shit.

My take:
Nobody on this planet should ever be jailed for cannabis possession in 2022. It’s a plant.

Also, when entering a shithole country as a guest, it’s best to obey all local laws and customs. If you don’t like said laws and customs, don’t visit said country.

Red team good. Blue team bad. Blue team good. Red team bad.

Can't wait to see how many Americans and Europeans get arrested in Indonesia for having sex on vacation while not being married! Hahaha!

 

[Blue Bigfoot]

The regime in DC is taking or attempting political prisoners as well. We ain't much better than Russia at this point from a decency standpoint. And by "we" I mean DC, not Americans or America as a whole.
But I am glad she was released. Maybe, it will change some of her views.

 

[UK90]

She should hire a PR person to handle all the press conference and her image going forward. Because if she doesn't handle this right, and say comes back to bash America, she's going to be extremely hated, and that will follow her everywhere she goes.

Hopefully she has the smarts to be extremely thankful and appreciative of the US, our leaders (for better or worse) and our service men.

She should express some appreciation for the sacrifice made for her. We set free the world’s most dangerous illegal arms dealers …one who doesn’t hesitate to supply the worst terrorists ….to get her out of prison for a crime for which she was in fact guilty.

The world is a less safe place after this deal.

 

[UKWildcats1987]

If Amerocans die due to this it's sad the media will ignore it.

The reporting on this is nauseating as no one seems to care or isn't allowed to speak out about the unfair trade and leaving a marine to rot.

 

[TheDude73]

If Amerocans die due to this it's sad the media will ignore it.

The reporting on this is nauseating as no one seems to care or isn't allowed to speak out about the unfair trade and leaving a marine to rot.

Neither Griner or Whelan are in fact stellar examples of pristine US citizens, although aside from Griner's bad decision for bringing hashish oil to a country where anything pot-related is punishable by lengthy prison terms, I can't find much about her like I have been able to find on Whelan's less-than-stellar past. She did have a domestic violence arrest in 2014 that was dismissed. She's also been vocal about the kneeling during the anthem, and of course is lesbian (all contrary to the R party's base ideologies).

And just because he was a "US Marine" doesn't make him the ultimate US citizen that needs to be rescued over all others imprisoned in Russia. The dude pretty much disgraced his SemperFi code and was court-martialed for theft. I'd wager that many USM veterans would cast this guy out once they found out his true background (let's not forget he wasn't a grunt, he was an administrative IT guy...not downplaying his service by any means, but the general perception of a US Marine is a billy bad ass grunt on the front lines fighting for our freedom...this guy is not that guy...).

 

[BlueThunderstruck]

What we’re seeing in this country right now is the scratching and clawing of a political party that is being left behind. Just 15 short years ago, ~54% of the US population were White Christians. That number is now at ~44%. That is a very good thing from my perspective, as it is the white Christians who are leading their side of the culture war and doing the vast majority of the scratching and clawing. This is no more evident than in the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe. The White Christians maintained a pocket of power and overstepped with their influence by causing an extremely publicly unpopular decision to go through. So now Republicans are like the dog who caught the car. You can’t afford to do unpopular shit when your numbers are declining. If that 44% gets down to 35% over the next decade or 2 like I think it will, then this country will finally be essentially free of the shackles of that awful party, especially when combined with the growing influence of Gen Z and the political participation of the generation that follows, which will likely be another liberal dominated generation.

Liberals have won the culture war as it stands today and conservatives have zero solutions for the supposed problems a liberal leaning society has created (the problem is of course the Republicans who obstruct progress) and we will have our way. And I will personally enjoy all the crying and bitching from those who feel “left behind”. Truth is, they couldn’t keep up with a changing world. If you become less able to compete in society as society becomes more equitable, then that’s a you problem. It’s not “White Replacement Theory”. It’s “you suck at life and blame your problems on others”. We are not a white nation, and we are not a Christian nation. Those that want it to be that way are losing, and they are losing bad. I’m excited about what’s to come for the country as religion and the hatred it breeds is slowly being defeated.

You are so full of shit.

 

[UKWildcats1987]

What we’re seeing in this country right now is the scratching and clawing of a political party that is being left behind. Just 15 short years ago, ~54% of the US population were White Christians. That number is now at ~44%. That is a very good thing from my perspective, as it is the white Christians who are leading their side of the culture war and doing the vast majority of the scratching and clawing. This is no more evident than in the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe. The White Christians maintained a pocket of power and overstepped with their influence by causing an extremely publicly unpopular decision to go through. So now Republicans are like the dog who caught the car. You can’t afford to do unpopular shit when your numbers are declining. If that 44% gets down to 35% over the next decade or 2 like I think it will, then this country will finally be essentially free of the shackles of that awful party, especially when combined with the growing influence of Gen Z and the political participation of the generation that follows, which will likely be another liberal dominated generation.

Liberals have won the culture war as it stands today and conservatives have zero solutions for the supposed problems a liberal leaning society has created (the problem is of course the Republicans who obstruct progress) and we will have our way. And I will personally enjoy all the crying and bitching from those who feel “left behind”. Truth is, they couldn’t keep up with a changing world. If you become less able to compete in society as society becomes more equitable, then that’s a you problem. It’s not “White Replacement Theory”. It’s “you suck at life and blame your problems on others”. We are not a white nation, and we are not a Christian nation. Those that want it to be that way are losing, and they are losing bad. I’m excited about what’s to come for the country as religion and the hatred it breeds is slowly being defeated.

Not sure what any of this has to do with the thread.

I agree the country looks to be a liberal loony land for years to come. I'm a moderate and don't like either party really. I'm not a fan of higher taxes and inflation though but it hurts the poor the most and most of those vote blue so it's ironic. When I hear one of them bitch about inflation and high prices I just laugh. My in laws are super dems and always bitching about high priced and being broke.

 

[mcnicKY91]

What we’re seeing in this country right now is the scratching and clawing of a political party that is being left behind. Just 15 short years ago, ~54% of the US population were White Christians. That number is now at ~44%. That is a very good thing from my perspective, as it is the white Christians who are leading their side of the culture war and doing the vast majority of the scratching and clawing. This is no more evident than in the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe. The White Christians maintained a pocket of power and overstepped with their influence by causing an extremely publicly unpopular decision to go through. So now Republicans are like the dog who caught the car. You can’t afford to do unpopular shit when your numbers are declining. If that 44% gets down to 35% over the next decade or 2 like I think it will, then this country will finally be essentially free of the shackles of that awful party, especially when combined with the growing influence of Gen Z and the political participation of the generation that follows, which will likely be another liberal dominated generation.

Liberals have won the culture war as it stands today and conservatives have zero solutions for the supposed problems a liberal leaning society has created (the problem is of course the Republicans who obstruct progress) and we will have our way. And I will personally enjoy all the crying and bitching from those who feel “left behind”. Truth is, they couldn’t keep up with a changing world. If you become less able to compete in society as society becomes more equitable, then that’s a you problem. It’s not “White Replacement Theory”. It’s “you suck at life and blame your problems on others”. We are not a white nation, and we are not a Christian nation. Those that want it to be that way are losing, and they are losing bad. I’m excited about what’s to come for the country as religion and the hatred it breeds is slowly being defeated.

Well as a white Christian, I answer to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The Creator of the Universe is incredibly clear in His Word about abortion and homosexual behavior.

Doesn't matter at all to me the general direction our country/world is heading in affirming this type of behavior. I am more worried about storing up treasures in Heaven and obeying my Creator who sent his Son do die brutally on a cross for my sins and everybody else's sins in the entire world than I am bowing down to the sinful desires of this world.

 

[Bassworship]

This is the state of our country right now that we made this move instead of bringing home people that have fought for our country.

 

[Cowtown Cat]

Imagine defending Joe the puppet Biden. What a fvcking disgrace that POS is. Dude is compromised beyond belief. He’s also weaponized every alphabet group in government to be partisan hacks.

 

[Cowtown Cat]

Fwiw, this is the exact same deal Putin offered months ago. We thought it was unacceptable and rejected it back then. So was Biden was just waiting until the mid-term elections were over before caving?

Yep. Just like with virtually everything else.

 

[the stat man]

I am sorry but I have no sympathy for her, she was as anti American as hell before she got her ass busted for an illegal substance in a foreign country. People everywhere they don't play overseas with stuff like that.

 

[Cowtown Cat]

You are so full of shit.

Yeah, that’s really bad. Maybe he should look at what our country was truly founded on. As far as Roe v Wade, the courts sent it back to the states. Simply because it’s a STATE issue, not a federal issue.

 

[UK90]

If you want to know more about the guy we set free, take a look at the below 60 minutes clip. The dude was hands down the most brilliant and powerful illegal arms dealer in the world. In fact, he built his friggin own private Air Force with over 60 huge cargo planes that he used to arm the very worst people on the planet.

It is not good at all that this guy is free and on the loose again.

 

[Cowtown Cat]

If you want to know more about the guy we set free, take a look at the below 60 minutes clip. The dude was hands down the most brilliant and powerful illegal arms dealer in the world. In fact, he built his friggin own private Air Force with over 60 huge cargo planes that he used to supply the very worst people on the planet.

It is not good at all that this guy is free and on the loose again.

View embedded media

Sounds about right. Just like Biden flooding our borders with illegals, that aren’t vetted whatsoever. He’s the biggest clown to ever serve as “president”. Oh, he was arming drug cartels. Well, no wonder Biden set him free. He’s all about drug cartels.

 

[the stat man]

Sounds about right. Just like Biden flooding our borders with illegals, that aren’t vetted whatsoever. He’s the biggest clown to ever serve as “president”. Oh, he was arming drug cartels. Well, no wonder Biden set him free. He’s all about drug cartels.

He is an embarrassment to that office, but look at the clueless idiot who's next in line.

 

[playmorezeppelin]

Don’t forget y’all, we’re a racist and oppressive country and white privilege controls our society, and if the WNBA would have paid their players more money (that they don’t have) Griner wouldn’t have been in Russia in the first place….


Anyone who still regurgitates that non-sense needs to have their head examined.

 

[Cowtown Cat]

He is an embarrassment to that office, but look at the clueless idiot who's next in line.

Not sure who you’re referencing. 🤔

 

[Wildcats1st]

Biden is no chess player. Giving up your rook to take a pawn is about as dumb as it comes

 

[sluggercatfan]

Couple of things here.
We trade a known terrorist, an arms dealer Viktor Bout known as the “merchant of death” for Griner?????
While Paul Whelan a US marine has been imprisoned 4 years in Russia.

She fits all the bells and whistkes for these woke morons running the military and in China's White House.

 

[Cowtown Cat]

Biden is no chess player. Giving up your rook to take a pawn is about as dumb as it comes

Well, he’s as dumb as they come. That’s for sure.

 

[ukjenning44]

If you want to know more about the guy we set free, take a look at the below 60 minutes clip. The dude was hands down the most brilliant and powerful illegal arms dealer in the world. In fact, he built his friggin own private Air Force with over 60 huge cargo planes that he used to arm the very worst people on the planet.

It is not good at all that this guy is free and on the loose again.

View embedded media

Totally unacceptable that Bout is free again. Numerous deaths around the world will be caused from this animal being set free.
Griner should’ve rotted in prison before this deal was made 😡

 

[TheDude73]

Sounds about right. Just like Biden flooding our borders with illegals, that aren’t vetted whatsoever. He’s the biggest clown to ever serve as “president”. Oh, he was arming drug cartels. Well, no wonder Biden set him free. He’s all about drug cartels.

Sounds about like all politicians and past presidents. They don't care about anything other than money and creating "situations" that they can "solve" later down the line, to appear as the "hero" for America, which then brings me back to PR, brownie points, votes, reelection and $$.

As snoozy as Biden is as a president, we can't forget that Trump had 2-3 years in office to work out a deal to get Whelan home, and did nothing. I can't recall any news about him even trying to work a deal with Putin to get him home.

Not saying one is better than the other, but just pointing out that politicians in general only do what will get them the best PR for reelection and campaign funding. It's really that simple. And in this case, Biden chose the demographic scenario over getting BOTH out of Russia. He'd have been better off negotiating and holding out for BOTH Americans for the terrorist, but he wanted his political points NOW, so he and his admin chose to go for it now for political points.

 

[sluggercatfan]

I’m all for getting any American out of foreign prisons, but it’s just so disgusting how this one played out.

Griner should spend every day on this earth advocating to get this Marine home. She won’t, she’ll just continue to bash the country she couldn’t wait to get home to.

Oh so true!!

 

[BlueThunderstruck]

Yeah, that’s really bad. Maybe he should look at what our country was truly founded on. As far as Roe v Wade, the courts sent it back to the states. Simply because it’s a STATE issue, not a federal issue.

He probably posted all of that crap one handed because one fist was raised the entire time. He’s always been so transparent.

 

[Cowtown Cat]

Sounds about like all politicians and past presidents. They don't care about anything other than money and creating "situations" that they can "solve" later down the line, to appear as the "hero" for America, which then brings me back to PR, brownie points, votes, reelection and $$.

As snoozy as Biden is as a president, we can't forget that Trump had 2-3 years in office to work out a deal to get Whelan home, and did nothing. I can't recall any news about him even trying to work a deal with Putin to get him home.

Not saying one is better than the other, but just pointing out that politicians in general only do what will get them the best PR for reelection and campaign funding. It's really that simple.

I don’t know much about that. I do know that Trump was a million times the president Biden is. Biden had ruined everything he’s touched.

 

[sluggercatfan]

What bothers me most about this moving forward is that now the media is gonna shove a microphone in her face any chance they get. She is about to become the female Lebron.

Will she be shown reading the first page of a book each time?

 

[BlueThunderstruck]

Not sure who you’re referencing. 🤔

The laughing hyena. You know, part of the Pee Pads and Knee Pads duo.

 

[BlueThunderstruck]

Sounds about like all politicians and past presidents. They don't care about anything other than money and creating "situations" that they can "solve" later down the line, to appear as the "hero" for America, which then brings me back to PR, brownie points, votes, reelection and $$.

As snoozy as Biden is as a president, we can't forget that Trump had 2-3 years in office to work out a deal to get Whelan home, and did nothing. I can't recall any news about him even trying to work a deal with Putin to get him home.

Not saying one is better than the other, but just pointing out that politicians in general only do what will get them the best PR for reelection and campaign funding. It's really that simple. And in this case, Biden chose the demographic scenario over getting BOTH out of Russia. He'd have been better off negotiating and holding out for BOTH Americans for the terrorist, but he wanted his political points NOW, so he and his admin chose to go for it now for political points.

How do you know Trump didn’t try to get him home? You don’t. You have zero idea what might have gone on.

 

[THE_HOOK]

He got played. Glad to see Griner released though, she got screwed for being stupid. Not sure she is worth a letting a terrorist out though. I hope we microchipped that guy while he was asleep.

She absolutely was not worth it.

 

[THE_HOOK]

What we’re seeing in this country right now is the scratching and clawing of a political party that is being left behind. Just 15 short years ago, ~54% of the US population were White Christians. That number is now at ~44%. That is a very good thing from my perspective, as it is the white Christians who are leading their side of the culture war and doing the vast majority of the scratching and clawing. This is no more evident than in the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe. The White Christians maintained a pocket of power and overstepped with their influence by causing an extremely publicly unpopular decision to go through. So now Republicans are like the dog who caught the car. You can’t afford to do unpopular shit when your numbers are declining. If that 44% gets down to 35% over the next decade or 2 like I think it will, then this country will finally be essentially free of the shackles of that awful party, especially when combined with the growing influence of Gen Z and the political participation of the generation that follows, which will likely be another liberal dominated generation.

Liberals have won the culture war as it stands today and conservatives have zero solutions for the supposed problems a liberal leaning society has created (the problem is of course the Republicans who obstruct progress) and we will have our way. And I will personally enjoy all the crying and bitching from those who feel “left behind”. Truth is, they couldn’t keep up with a changing world. If you become less able to compete in society as society becomes more equitable, then that’s a you problem. It’s not “White Replacement Theory”. It’s “you suck at life and blame your problems on others”. We are not a white nation, and we are not a Christian nation. Those that want it to be that way are losing, and they are losing bad. I’m excited about what’s to come for the country as religion and the hatred it breeds is slowly being defeated.

Seems like the "scum" always win.

 

[MissingWCC]

They trade off on who's the most "evil". One day it could be D, the next R, and even I and non-affiliated. In the end, it all results in the same - no true concern for the constituents - only worried about campaign donations, PR, reelection, power, and corporate cronies and lobbyists, and very little action towards the betterment of American society.

If one were to step back from their party boats and look at it from a neutral position, over 50+ years, it is crystal clear that there is equal blame for any US politician's failures, bad (one-sided) policies, and poor decisions, regardless of party. The fact that they can't figure out, as grown damn people, how to work together for a common goal (like, say, negotiating a known terrorist for BOTH American prisoners?!?), tells me all we need to know about politicians as a whole - they cater to their base simply because that's what gets them donation dollars and reelected. The core policy desires of those bases are only used by politicians to get votes - then they sit in their fancy offices becoming millionaires while pretending to be working hard for the policies they pitched during their campaign - and nothing gets done (except glaring stupid decisions such as trading a terrorist prisoner for an NBA woman who technically broke Russian law over a US marine who did nothing wrong).

EDIT: Not sure if anyone has actually looked up Whelan's background, but the guy isn't this decorated Marine like many might want to make him out to be. He was an administrative clerk in Iraq. He's also been caught in a plethora of lies, theft and cheating, and was even court-martialed from the USM and given a bad conduct discharge (from posts here, one might think he's some honorably discharged US Marine killing machine). From Wiki (and confirmed on other non-politically affiliated sites):

"According to a deposition Whelan gave in 2013, he was in law enforcement from 1988 to 2000 as a police officer in Chelsea, Michigan, and a sheriff's deputy in Washtenaw County.[7] The Chelsea Police however said he worked in lesser roles and as a part-time officer from 1990 to 1996, while the Washtenaw County sheriff reported no record of his employment.[7] A former colleague said he was a patrol officer from 1998 to 2000 in the Keego Harbor police department.[7]

He was an IT manager for the Kelly Services staffing company from 2001[8] to 2003, and then 2008 to 2010. From 2010 to 2016 Whelan was Kelly Services' senior manager of global security and operations.[8]

He enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve in 1994.[7] He took military leave from Kelly Services to serve with the Marine Corps Reserve from 2003 to 2008, including service in Iraq. He held the rank of staff sergeant with Marine Air Control Group 38 working as an administrative clerk and administrative chief, and he was part of Operation Iraqi Freedom.[8] After a court-martial conviction in January 2008 on multiple counts "related to larceny", he was sentenced to 60 days restriction, reduction to pay grade E-4, and a bad conduct discharge.[9][10] The specific charges against him included attempting to steal more than $10,000 in 2006 in Iraq and using a false Social Security number to create a false account on a government computer system to grade his own examinations.

When arrested in Russia, Whelan was director of global security and investigations for BorgWarner, an international automotive parts manufacturer based in Michigan.[8] His work with Kelly Services and BorgWarner gave Whelan contacts with law enforcement in many countries.[citation needed]

Whelan traveled to Russia several times from 2006 and maintained an intermittent presence on a Russian language social media website, Vkontakte (VK), where he had approximately 70 contacts. He has studied Russian but communicated online using Google Translate.[11][3] Whelan supported US President Donald Trump and, after Trump's 2016 election victory, Whelan posted in Russian Президент Трамп Вперед!! (President Trump Onward!!).[12][a]

He said in a deposition in 2013 that he holds a bachelor's degree in criminal justice and an MBA degree.[13] He took courses at Northern Michigan University from fall 1988 to fall 1990 without earning a degree.[11]"

Once again you are all over this Dude. I have looked up Whelan's background and I agree that he is probably untouchable in this case as far as public support for his release is concerned. He was supposedly caught red handed with the evidence so who knows. It is easy to look at his military record as opposed to a basketball player and gripe, but the facts don't look great for him if we leave party affiliation out of it all.

 

[TheDude73]

How do you know Trump didn’t try to get him home? You don’t. You have zero idea what might have gone on.

I don't know, just like you don't know if Biden has been or is trying to get Whelan home. I just don't recall any news about his attempts, and most presidents and politicians won't wait a second to not communicate that they are doing things that might appeal to their base and get them reelected.