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#softpower

6 posts5 participants0 posts today
doboprobodyne<p><span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://social.vivaldi.net/@ajsadauskas" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>ajsadauskas</span></a></span> <span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://aus.social/@skribe" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>skribe</span></a></span> </p><p>I would dearly love to agree. However: the workaround is elegant in it's simplicity, the aggressor state purchases media outlets in the target country.</p><p>By their nature they will be to some degree self-funding.</p><p>If done correctly, the person doing the purchasing can even get a seat in the House of Lords and thus contribute to writing the laws that will govern the target country for generations to come.</p><p>It also helps the person doing the purchasing become a household name, which is a soft-power of a separate sort.</p><p>I'm always slightly wary of using New Statesman as a source but in a pinch, they have a good summary of it. <a href="https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/media/2023/02/what-does-evgeny-lebedev-want-evening-standard-independent-newspaper" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">newstatesman.com/politics/medi</span><span class="invisible">a/2023/02/what-does-evgeny-lebedev-want-evening-standard-independent-newspaper</span></a></p><p><a href="https://mathstodon.xyz/tags/propaganda" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>propaganda</span></a> <a href="https://mathstodon.xyz/tags/media" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>media</span></a> <a href="https://mathstodon.xyz/tags/softPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>softPower</span></a> <a href="https://mathstodon.xyz/tags/UK" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>UK</span></a> <a href="https://mathstodon.xyz/tags/journalism" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>journalism</span></a></p>
Nonilex<p><a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a>’s <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USAID" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USAID</span></a> cuts cripple American response to <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Myanmar" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Myanmar</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/earthquake" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>earthquake</span></a><br>
Three days after the quake, there are NO teams from the <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/UnitedStates" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>UnitedStates</span></a> on the ground in Myanmar, a stark illustration of how Trump has upended America’s role in disaster response.</p><p><a href="https://masto.ai/tags/ForeignPolicy" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ForeignPolicy</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/ForeignAid" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ForeignAid</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USpol" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USpol</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/geopolitics" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>geopolitics</span></a> <br><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/03/31/myanmar-earthquake-thailand-usaid-trump/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">washingtonpost.com/world/2025/</span><span class="invisible">03/31/myanmar-earthquake-thailand-usaid-trump/</span></a></p>
Lazarou Monkey Terror 🚀💙🌈<p>The cliché of the loud, ignorant American abroad.....that is the Couchfucker.</p><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/mar/31/trump-greenland-us-morally-wrong-strategy-disastrous" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">theguardian.com/commentisfree/</span><span class="invisible">2025/mar/31/trump-greenland-us-morally-wrong-strategy-disastrous</span></a></p><p><a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/TimothySnyder" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>TimothySnyder</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/Couchfucker" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Couchfucker</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/JDVance" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>JDVance</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/Diplomacy" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Diplomacy</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/Fascism" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Fascism</span></a></p>
Nonilex<p>The "majority view" in <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/China" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>China</span></a> sees some of <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a>'s moves as an "own goal"</p><p>Da asserts that most Chinese people he talks w/viewed <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USAID" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USAID</span></a>, the <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/ForeignAid" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ForeignAid</span></a> agency, as one of America's strengths, improving its image &amp; influence in the developing world. Virtually eliminating the agency was "in <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/China" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>China</span></a>'s interest."</p><p><a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Geopolitics" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Geopolitics</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USpol" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USpol</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a></p>
Nonilex<p>Da said he learned some of his English in college while listening to <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/VOA" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>VOA</span></a> broadcasts &amp; also learned news that wasn't reported in the Chinese media.</p><p>Da acknowledges that in recent years, VOA was less important as the internet spread. But he says another agency mattered more: the U.S. Agency for International Development (<a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USAID" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USAID</span></a>).</p><p><a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Geopolitics" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Geopolitics</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USpol" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USpol</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a></p>
Nonilex<p>In an email to <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USAID" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USAID</span></a> staff, Jeremy Lewin, a <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/DOGE" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>DOGE</span></a> ofcl who took over running the day-to-day ops at USAID from Pete Marocco on March 20, said the RIFs would go into effect either on July 1 or Sept 2.</p><p>This comes as the <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a> admin wraps up the dismantling of the 64-year-old USAID, having terminated some 5,200 contracts, &amp; moves forward with its plan to shift the remaining portion of its work to the <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/State" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>State</span></a> Dept.</p><p><a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Musk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Musk</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Aid" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Aid</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/geopolitics" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>geopolitics</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USpol" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USpol</span></a></p>
Nonilex<p>The <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a> admin is terminating nearly all of the remaining 900 employees of the <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USAID" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USAID</span></a>, in a final reduction-in-force <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/RIF" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>RIF</span></a>.</p><p>Virtually no one will be spared, not even political appointees, acc/to 2 snr USAID ofcls….</p><p>Staff were ordered to leave "the front office" by 1PM on Fri for reasons that are not clear, the ofcls said. But they may still be asked to continue working for a few months.</p><p><a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Musk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Musk</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/DOGE" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>DOGE</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Aid" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Aid</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/geopolitics" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>geopolitics</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> <br><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/goats-and-soda/2025/03/28/g-s1-56968/usaid-terminates-nearly-all-its-remaining-employees" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">npr.org/sections/goats-and-sod</span><span class="invisible">a/2025/03/28/g-s1-56968/usaid-terminates-nearly-all-its-remaining-employees</span></a></p>
Nonilex<p>In a dangerous &amp; complex world, it’s not enough to be strong. You must also be <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/smart" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>smart</span></a>. As Secy of <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/State" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>State</span></a> during the Obama admin, I argued for smart <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/power" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>power</span></a>, integrating the hard power of our military w/the <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> of our <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/diplomacy" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>diplomacy</span></a>, development assistance, economic might &amp; cultural <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/influence" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>influence</span></a>. None of those tools can do the job alone. Together, they make America a <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/superpower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>superpower</span></a>. The <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a> approach is <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/dumb" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>dumb</span></a> power.</p>
Nonilex<p>The <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a> admin intends to terminate the <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/UnitedStates" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>UnitedStates</span></a>’ financial support for <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Gavi" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Gavi</span></a>, the org that has helped purchase critical <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/vaccines" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>vaccines</span></a> for <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/children" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>children</span></a> in developing countries, saving millions of lives over the past quarter century, &amp; to significantly scale back support for efforts to combat <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/malaria" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>malaria</span></a>, one of the biggest killers globally.</p><p><a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USpol" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USpol</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/geopolitics" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>geopolitics</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USAID" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USAID</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/TheCrueltyIsThePoint" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>TheCrueltyIsThePoint</span></a></p>
Nonilex<p>🤬 <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/US" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>US</span></a> to End <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Vaccine" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Vaccine</span></a> Funding for Poor Countries</p><p>A 281-page spreadsheet obtained by NYT lists the <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a> admin’s plans for thousands of <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/ForeignAid" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ForeignAid</span></a> programs.</p><p><a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USpol" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USpol</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/geopolitics" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>geopolitics</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/GAVI" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>GAVI</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USAID" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USAID</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/TheCrueltyIsThePoint" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>TheCrueltyIsThePoint</span></a> <br><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/26/health/usaid-cuts-gavi-bird-flu.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&amp;referringSource=articleShare&amp;sgrp=p&amp;pvid=0B1E1CC6-D21C-41FD-BBF7-6EF340A550AA" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">nytimes.com/2025/03/26/health/</span><span class="invisible">usaid-cuts-gavi-bird-flu.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&amp;referringSource=articleShare&amp;sgrp=p&amp;pvid=0B1E1CC6-D21C-41FD-BBF7-6EF340A550AA</span></a></p>
Bandersnatch<p><span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://mastodon.social/@crazyeddie" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>crazyeddie</span></a></span> <span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://fosstodon.org/@Nux" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>Nux</span></a></span> <span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://mastodon.social/@ErikJonker" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>ErikJonker</span></a></span> <span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://a.gup.pe/u/geopolitics" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>geopolitics</span></a></span> <span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://fosstodon.org/@bert_hubert" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>bert_hubert</span></a></span> </p><p>Odd since the <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a> regime seems to be bound &amp; determined to destroy all of the <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/USAs" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USAs</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/softpower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>softpower</span></a> &amp; about 1/2 of the USAs <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/military" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>military</span></a> power.</p>
Benjamin Carr, Ph.D. 👨🏻‍💻🧬<p>How <a href="https://hachyderm.io/tags/ElonMusk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ElonMusk</span></a>’s <a href="https://hachyderm.io/tags/DOGE" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>DOGE</span></a> Cuts Leave a Vacuum That <a href="https://hachyderm.io/tags/China" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>China</span></a> Can Fill<br>The Department of Government Efficiency is shuttering organizations that Beijing worried about most, or actively sought to subvert. And, as with much that <a href="https://hachyderm.io/tags/Musk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Musk</span></a>’s DOGE has dismembered, there has been no published study of the costs and benefits of losing those capabilities — and no discussion of how the roles, arguably as important as a fighter jet, might be replaced. <br><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/22/us/politics/elon-musk-doge-china.html" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">nytimes.com/2025/03/22/us/poli</span><span class="invisible">tics/elon-musk-doge-china.html</span></a><br><a href="https://archive.ph/YQ2wU" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="">archive.ph/YQ2wU</span><span class="invisible"></span></a> <a href="https://hachyderm.io/tags/US" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>US</span></a> <a href="https://hachyderm.io/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a></p>
Nonilex<p>The <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a> admin plans to overhaul the structure of how the US distributes billions of dollars of <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/ForeignAid" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ForeignAid</span></a>, acc/to an internal memo that calls for funding fewer areas that it views as better aligned w/[Trump’s]…geopolitical interests.</p><p>The proposal,…comes during a push by Trump &amp; <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/billionaire" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>billionaire</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Musk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Musk</span></a> to *shrink* [destroy] the federal govt, which they say misuses taxpayer money for causes that do not advance *US* [their] interests.</p><p><a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USpol" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USpol</span></a> #<a href="https://masto.ai/tags/geopolitics" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>geopolitics</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USAID" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USAID</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> <br><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-officials-propose-plan-revamping-us-foreign-aid-memo-says-2025-03-20/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">reuters.com/world/us/trump-off</span><span class="invisible">icials-propose-plan-revamping-us-foreign-aid-memo-says-2025-03-20/</span></a></p>
Nonilex<p>Those officials are Jeremy Lewin, who has been working for the cost-cutting task force led by the billionaire <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/ElonMusk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ElonMusk</span></a>, &amp; Kenneth Jackson, a <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/State" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>State</span></a> Dept official who was named the acting president of the U.S. Institute of <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Peace" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Peace</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USIP" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USIP</span></a> this week [another independent agency under assault by <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a>, <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Musk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Musk</span></a> &amp; <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/DOGE" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>DOGE</span></a> &amp; subsequently embroiled in federal lawsuits].</p><p><a href="https://masto.ai/tags/law" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>law</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USpol" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USpol</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/ForeignPolicy" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ForeignPolicy</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/TrumpPurge" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>TrumpPurge</span></a></p>
Nonilex<p><a href="https://masto.ai/tags/PeteMarocco" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>PeteMarocco</span></a>, the <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/State" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>State</span></a> Dept ofcl who oversaw the <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a> admin’s efforts to dismantle the main govt agency distributing foreign <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/aid" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>aid</span></a>, announced in an email on Tues night that he would be replaced at the agency by 2 officials who had been involved in making the cuts.</p><p>Marocco said in the email that he would remain at State as director of <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/ForeignAid" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ForeignAid</span></a>, but that 2 other officials would handle what remains of the <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USAID" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USAID</span></a>.</p><p><a href="https://masto.ai/tags/law" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>law</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USpol" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USpol</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Musk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Musk</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/DOGE" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>DOGE</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/ForeignPolicy" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ForeignPolicy</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/TrumpPurge" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>TrumpPurge</span></a></p>
Nonilex<p>2 Officials Who Helped Dismantle <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/US" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>US</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Aid" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Aid</span></a> Agency Are Named as Its New Leaders</p><p>Secretary of <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/State" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>State</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/MarcoRubio" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>MarcoRubio</span></a> said he had canceled 83% of <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USAID" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USAID</span></a>’s programs. A federal judge found that efforts to shutter the agency were likely <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/unconstitutional" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>unconstitutional</span></a>.</p><p><a href="https://masto.ai/tags/law" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>law</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/USpol" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USpol</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Musk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Musk</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/DOGE" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>DOGE</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/ForeignPolicy" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ForeignPolicy</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/TrumpPurge" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>TrumpPurge</span></a> <br><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/19/us/politics/usaid-doge-leadership.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&amp;referringSource=articleShare&amp;sgrp=p&amp;pvid=1B3ACA71-70A6-4630-8DE3-5A77E2B20013" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">nytimes.com/2025/03/19/us/poli</span><span class="invisible">tics/usaid-doge-leadership.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&amp;referringSource=articleShare&amp;sgrp=p&amp;pvid=1B3ACA71-70A6-4630-8DE3-5A77E2B20013</span></a></p>
MoscowMigrant<p><a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Trump</span></a> achieved what the <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/USSR" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>USSR</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/KGB" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>KGB</span></a> and <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/Russia" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Russia</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/FSB" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>FSB</span></a> never could - silencing <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/VoiceOfAmerica" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>VoiceOfAmerica</span></a>.</p><p>Neither Soviet agents nor global adversaries accomplished in 83 years what Trump did in one stroke, cutting a lifeline to 360 million listeners worldwide.</p><p>It's a self-inflicted wound, dismantling <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/America" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>America</span></a>'s most potent <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> tool, celebrated by <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/Putin" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Putin</span></a> and autocrats, undermining decades of global influence.</p><p><a href="https://moscowmigrant.com/posts/why-does-modern-america-need-the-statue-of-liberty/#trump-undermines-americas-influence" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">moscowmigrant.com/posts/why-do</span><span class="invisible">es-modern-america-need-the-statue-of-liberty/#trump-undermines-americas-influence</span></a></p>
Emeritus Prof Christopher May<p>I'm starting to run a list in my head of soft power institutions that are having funding cut (in one way or another) at the very same time the Govt. has empanelled a group to look at how the UK's soft power might be repaired.</p><p>This week is the likely cuts to the BBC world service, which as we all know retains a reputation (now sadly partly diminished) for reliability &amp; objectivity; which (well who'd have thought) fed into the UK's soft power.</p><p>More idiocy on soft power!</p><p><a href="https://zirk.us/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> <a href="https://zirk.us/tags/politics" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>politics</span></a></p>
acemaxx<p>President Donald Trump does not understand <a href="https://econtwitter.net/tags/softpower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>softpower</span></a> - His background in <a href="https://econtwitter.net/tags/NewYork" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>NewYork</span></a> <a href="https://econtwitter.net/tags/realestate" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>realestate</span></a> gave him a truncated view of power limited to coercion and transactions, chart @financialtimes.com <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/63df699a-efdb-4613-b070-80a763ec024e" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">ft.com/content/63df699a-efdb-4</span><span class="invisible">613-b070-80a763ec024e</span></a></p>
Kevin Karhan :verified:<p><span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://mastodon.social/@onlymildlyneurotic" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>onlymildlyneurotic</span></a></span> OFC <a href="https://infosec.space/tags/Cuba" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Cuba</span></a>'s <a href="https://infosec.space/tags/SoftPower" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>SoftPower</span></a> strategy is <a href="https://infosec.space/tags/MedicalAssistance" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>MedicalAssistance</span></a> and <a href="https://infosec.space/tags/DevelopmentAid" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>DevelopmentAid</span></a> and I do think that this is a net positive.</p>
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