I am shocked that the former Russia Today is not a legit media outlet but rather a shady Kremlin propaganda tool that is spreading dis/misinformation in the US.

According to the Justice Dept., two RT staffers funneled cash to US-based right-wing pro-Trump influencers to whip up fear about an invasion of immigrants from the southern border, promote American isolationism, undermine support for Ukraine and boost the image of the Mango Mussolini.

Those influencers on the Russian take are the same phonies who chant “USA, USA” at the drop of a dime.

The Justice Dept. indictment alleges that the Kremlin funneled $10M to Tennessee-based Tenet Media, home of YouTube and social media commentators who reach millions of Americans, to do its dirty work.

Tenet is unnamed in the document but is described as a “network of heterodox commentators that focus on Western political and cultural issues.” That’s what the firm calls itself on its website.

Moscow denies the Justice Dept.’s charges. Russian leader Vladimir Putin wants to know why in the world he would want to float pro-Trump stories in the US.

Putin said he supports Kamala Harris for US president. Boy, that guy is good at the propaganda game.

Best future for US Steel is with Nippon Steel... As a proud former member of the Service Employees International Union, I’m a strong advocate for organized labor. Unions are part of the family's heritage. My dad was a long-time member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.

Despite that background, I believe the United Steelworkers Union opposition to Nippon Steel’s $14B takeover of US Steel is a reflexive and short-sighted decision.

Joe Biden, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are making political points by opposing the deal. They apparently have bought the USU’s line that the transaction is nothing but bad news for its membership.

That’s too bad because the opposite is true.

USS has been in long decline, posting years of losses up until 2020. Clocking in at No. 24, It barely cracks the world's Top 25 steelmaker roster.

Nippon Steel is the globe’s No. 4 steelmaker. Nucor Corp, a minimill operation, is America’s biggest steelmaker, ranking No. 16 on the global list

Nippon Steel has promised to invest $2.7B to keep US Steel’s older mills in operation. That’s money that USS simply doesn’t have.

USS CEO David Burritt has threatened to close those mills in the event the Nippon Steel deal falls apart.

Instead of dealing with that reality, the USU took a shot at Burritt.

“His reckless statements and mismanagement are the only true obstacles to U.S. Steel remaining a sustainable steel company,” the union said in a statement.

Burritt isn’t bluffing.

USS, which chalked up a strong of losses prior to 2020, has a history of shutting plants. It recently shuttered portions of its mills near Detroit and St. Louis, moves that threw 4K unionized workers off the payroll.

Nippon’s investment plan includes a $1B upgrade to USS’ Mon Valley Works so it remains open for business for future Pennsylvania steelworkers. USS had cancelled its Mon Valley investment.

President Biden has deemed USS an asset that is vital to the security of the US.

But Japan is not China. It the world’s No. 3 economy and America’s top ally in Asia.

How can the US ask Japan to step up its defense spending to counter the military threat to China, and then turn around and deny it the right to to serve as a custodian for USS? That's being two-faced. Rejection of the Nippon Steel would be bad news for the USU, and America’s foreign policy.

Unfortunately, the Nippon/USS situation has been caught up in presidential politics. Pennsylvania is a must-win state for both Harris and Trump. Let the pandering begin.

The best way out of the political mess is for Nippon Steel to put a pause on its effort to take over USS until the next president actually makes it to the White House and the loser concedes the election.

Cooler heads would then prevail.

O’Dwyer’s Free Speech Champion Award Goes to Michael Roth, Wesleyan University president, for welcoming nonviolent protests that do not disrupt normal university operations on his campus.

He believes the civic mission of universities is to help students develop character traits that would make them better citizens. “The last thing any university should want is an apolitical campus,” he wrote in a guest essay in the New York Times on September 2.

Roth believes protests should be more than just rhyming chants. They should encourage a person to inquire about how different people feel about issues.

“The classic liberal approach to freedom of expression underscores that discussions are valuable only when people are able to disagree, listen to opposing views, change their minds,” he wrote.

Protests can help people break out of their “silos of like-mindedness” that is the root for much of the hyper-partisanship and polarization that infects American society.

Roth is right.

Dept. of Sweet Irony… A memo from Donald Trump’s campaign braintrust that banned chatting with the press gets leaked to NBC News.

Campaign chairs Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita informed underlings that they shouldn’t speak or communicate with the press, on or off the record, unless they received authorization from the top.

The duo's memo praised Team Trump for doing a great job at preventing leaks “because everyone knows what the policy is and what we expect from everyone.” Oh well, maybe not everybody, Susie and Chris.

You can bet the great mole hunt is on at Trump’s campaign HQ for the rat that leaked the memo to the parent of 24/7 Trump-bashing MSNBC.

A double dose of sweet irony.