Here he is in a September 3 appearance on the YouTube channel of TV Rain Network. It identifies itself this way: “TV Rain Newsroom is the English-language channel of Russia’s biggest independent television station, TV Rain. We have been breaking the government’s media censorship walls since 2010 and will continue to do so today.” (1)
Since it’s illegal in Russia to even call the current conflict with Ukraine a “war,” I’m guessing that Rain TV doesn’t get a lot of exposure in Russia. In fact, the totally independent news agency Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported on it last year:
The independent Russian-language Dozhd TV channel that was suspended in Russia over its war coverage and then yanked by Latvian authorities in December has been given a license to broadcast in the Netherlands, according to editor in chief Tikhon Dzyadko. ...But Hodges in his TV Rain appearance loves him some war in Ukraine. Boy-hiddee does he love it! The only problem he has with NATO policy is that NATO countries haven’t been willing to give Ukrainians lots more arms and give them faster and give them whatever they want to let them escalate the war as much as they want. And anyone who worries about the West blundering its way into direct war with nuclear-armed Russia is just one of them thar appeasement wusses!
Dozhd TV had faced unexpected obstacles since its suspension by Russian authorities in March over its coverage of the invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow ruthlessly censors including punishments for criticism of its conduct or even calling it anything but a "special military operation" as opposed to a war.
After its relocation to the Baltics, Latvia's electronic media authority revoked Dozhd's broadcasting license last month.
Latvian National Electronic Media Council (NEPLP) head Ivars Abolins said on December 6 that the pending cutoff was imposed "in connection with the threat to national security and public order." (2)
Listen to his presentation and see if I’m exaggerating ...
Hodges is currently listed on the website of the lobbying firm, Republic Consulting LLC as one of their consultants, a “senior adviser.” (3) They list their areas of specialization as follows:
It’s in alphabetical order, so the fact that Gen. Hodges’ lobbying firm lists “defense” at the top of their specialization is probably only a coincidence.
Hodges is not unusual in this. Many former generals work for lobbying firms or defense firms. But that fact is almost never mentioned when they appear on TV. At least I’ve never seen it done. Nor do American networks regularly run disclaimers during such discussions about how much advertising they receive from defense contractors. (Hint: it’s a lot!) Also “regularly” is being generous there. I’ve never in my life seen them do it. But if you’re watching the Sunday morning programs on TV, you can see the advertisements from producers of ordinary consumer goods and services like Boeing or McDonnell Douglas.
Oddly enough, the word “consulting” doesn’t seem anywhere to be found in the Yale Law School version of Federalist #10. (4) Whatever ...
But their What We Do list includes the following:
Lobbying | Advocacy: Successful advocacy is more than simply providing access. Our approach to lobbying is grounded in the deep working relationships we have with decision makers in Congress and the Executive Branch. We know their interests and needs, and we continually work to align them with our clients’ priorities. When we engage policy makers on a client’s behalf, it is never just a meeting, but an ongoing conversation.
Senior Advisor General Ben has the following observations in his, you know, totally objective, disinterested military evaluation in the video:
The United States should not be putting any restrictions on how Ukraine uses the weapons that we’ve provided. Nor should the UK or Germany or anyone else. And that would not be the case if my government [presumably the US] had made it clear that we wanted Ukraine to actually win this war.Somehow, he never gets around to explaining that it has been a war of attrition since sometime in 2022 and that Russia with its far bigger population and artillery supplies and – since the start of the war – a far bigger, more experienced, and better equipped army than they had in February 2022, actually has a strong advantage over Ukraine. And that there is little immediate likelihood that Ukraine with its own armed forces is going to make any substantial gains anytime soon in taking back large portions of the oblasts the Russians currently occupies. And certainly not the Crimean Peninsula. And since Russia has firmly established military control over those areas, Ukraine is in the position of having to take the military offense to recapture them, in a type of warfare in which offensive actions are far most costly in terms of troops and firepower than defensive warfare.
The interviewer, Ekaterina Kotrikadze, offers up a word-salad question.
General, I was wondering, you know, through all this time of the big war in Ukraine, I was wondering, maybe they know something in Washington DC. They, they have, I don’t know, acknowledgement of the reaction. … They are expecting something from Putin, and that’s why, and that why they’re not, they’re not acting, like, Ukraine is expecting them to. So maybe, there is something in particular that the Biden Administration has as an information. Of they’re just, they’re just scared.If we don’t stop the Commies in South Vietnam, before you know it Vietnamese ships will be attacking San Francisco!! (Oh, wait, wrong war, sorry…)
[Senior Advisor General Ben:] I believe that the Administration, which is loaded with good, intelligent, industrious, patriotic people, hasn’t, they have an excessive fear that Russia might use a nuclear weapon, that Russia might escalate somehow.
I know that there are people that speculate, you know, there must be some secret agreement or something going on, I don’t know that. But what I do know is what I hear the Administration say, and how they talk and how they talk about wanting to avoid escalation. And the very restrictive language when they describe, “Well, Ukraine doesn’t need this particular weapon because of, they’re in the defense.”
You know, these are people that are talkin’ that have no understanding of warfare or what is required to help Ukraine actually defend itself. So, I don’t think there’s some conspiracy or secret agreement, uh, although certainly Russia would love that. They would like to have some kind of a, uh, uh, the criminal would love to have a deal. Uh, and there unfortunately are some people in Washington and Berlin and London that, uh, would support something like that.
What I meant to say was: Wusses! Only wimps would worry about nuclear war!! Our nukes are bigger than their nukes and we oughta be ready to whup them out and show them Russkies what for!
I don’t know what we would do without experienced, disinterested Senior Advisor wise men like General Ben.
We can never get enough of them (5):
Notes:
(1) Former U.S. General Ben Hodges on Western reluctance to aid Ukraine – ‘It’s shameful!’. TV Rain Newsroom YouTube channel 09/03/2024. <https://youtu.be/RoHpxLGJITQ?si=qMPfErRmEn2jZlNj> (Accessed: 2024-04-09).
(2) RTE/RL’s Russia Service (2023): Exiled Independent Russian TV Channel Dozhd Gets Dutch Broadcast License As ‘TV Rain’. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty 01/10/2023. <https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-dozhd-dutch-broadcast-license/32216931.html> (Accessed: 2024-04-09). I’m assuming that RFE/RL is well-known enough that I don’t need to specify that I’m being sarcastic in calling it “totally independent.” Although they do have a reputation for mostly not publishing totally bogus stuff. I wouldn’t take them as the last word on any controversial subject.
(3) https://www.republicconsulting.com/
(4) https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/fed10.asp
(5) Dr. Strangelove – Precious Bodily Fluids. poolitics YouTube channel 01/28/2008. <https://youtu.be/N1KvgtEnABY?si=o678Zh-w8H1ja046> (Accessed: 2024-04-09).
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