Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin's Control of Russian TV
In a lengthy, front-page article today, the New York Times investigates how Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has increasingly deployed the Kremlin-controlled TV networks as a political tool to silence his opponents. read more »
Putin Named Time's Person of the Year
Russian president Vladimir Putin has been named Time's 2007 Person of the Year.
Let's just get this out of the way now: Naming someone Person of the Year doesn't imply a positive judgment on the person by Time's editors. It just means they think he was influential. read more »
Another Putin Pal—Patriots Owner Robert Kraft—Buys in The Plaza
According to city records filed today, a buyer named Kraft Plaza LLC just forked over $14,477,211 (plus 59 cents) for an eleventh floor apartment at The Plaza.
Who’s the actual buyer? It’s not hard to guess, considering the appearance of “Kraft” in the corporation name, and considering that the corporation’s address is “1 Patriot Place” in Foxborough, Mass., and considering that the Post long-ago reported that New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft would be buying a condo at the 100-year-old hotel.
Hilariously, this adds another layer to the endlessly rich Russian subplot at the Plaza. As the Post wrote: “Kraft presented Russian President Vladimir Putin with his diamond-encrusted 2005 Super Bowl ring during a meeting with U.S. business executives, so the fomer KGB head might be a frequent visitor (wink, wink) on Fifth Avenue.”
So if you’re keeping score at home, that means the Plaza now officially has two big Putin pals, plus two serious enemies of the Russian state.
Relentless Bush Baffles His Critics
