Sergei Markov and Roman Alyokhin, respectively the political analyst and pro-war blogger, were both designated as “foreign agents” this year, a label previously used against anti-Putin voices. Carrying a negative Soviet-era connotation, it obliges people to identify themselves as foreign agents on social media and in other publications, as well as exposing them to crippling financial limitations.
Taken together, analysts say, the cases point to a new trend: a purge not only of dissenters but also of the regime’s own supporters, as rival factions within the system turn on each other.
“First, they went after the anti-war voices. Now there are none left, and the repressive machine cannot be stopped,” said the Russian political scientist Ekaterina Schulmann.
Well, that’s the issue with authoritarian regimes: A common enemy is needed to keep people in line. Once the excitement stops or the enemy doesn’t exist anymore, the infighting starts.
It’s going to be the same in the US: Some pro Trump folks will look very stupid once the machinery turns on them for whatever reason.