Putin’s Top Russian State TV Propaganda Peddlers Are Freaking Out Over The Furious Backlash To His ‘Partial Mobilization’ Plan

Vladimir Putin’s decision to launch a “partial mobilization” of Russia’s reservists has been met with such forceful resistance that even his most prominent supporters are worried he might have a mutiny on his hands.

After several humiliating defeats and the loss of tens of thousands of soldiers, Putin’s military is in dire need of more bodies to be sacrificed in his badly failing invasion of Ukraine. He first tried recruiting convicts to fight his war but it seems that strategy didn’t play out because now, everyday citizens are being drafted to the front lines. And the people are pissed (and breaking their arms).

Unconfirmed reports claim that a quarter of a million Russians have fled the country following the mobilization announcement while nationwide protests against the draft led to over 1,200 arrests.

Now, as the Daily Beast’s Julia Davis reports, two of Putin’s biggest cheerleaders, pro-Kremlin propagandist Vladimir Solovyov and head of Russia Today Margarita Simonyan, are openly criticizing the regime’s handling of the mobilization, warning it may lead to even more rioting in the streets.

“There are panicked calls on my phone, on Margarita’s phone, which shows that a number of people involved have forgotten how to do their jobs,” Solovyov said on his Sunday night show. Simonyan, who guested on the program, complained about conflicting reports as to whom the draft would affect. She initially believed only those with prior military experience would be mobilized. Still, after learning that recruits included “students, those outside the age limit, people with serious illnesses, barbers, teachers, musicians, and a single mother of two young children” not to mention citizens aged 60 and over, she became worried, questioning whether those in power knew what they were doing. To make matters worse, both TV pundits relayed stories of rusty weapons being handed to new recruits.

“All of them have phones and they won’t stay silent. If they’re being handed rotten things, if they have no helmets, no body armor, no one is going to hide it… I will tell you very politely: don’t play games with people… This isn’t some liberal riff-raff, these are our people and I refuse to be silent about it,” Simonyan said. “Comrades, Commanders, this is not the time for this… don’t anger the people!”

The news anchor then relayed the story of a mutiny that occurred on the Russian battleship Potemkin after sailors were fed maggot-infested meat.

“Let me remind you that in 1905, small things like these led to the first mutiny of an entire military unit in the history of our country. Is that what you want?” She asked. “You’re toying with armed people.”

(Via The Daily Beast)