War in Ukraine Hasn't Loosened Putin's Grip on Power
TimeMAY 2022
VP Harris Says Biden Administration Not Pushing Regime Change in Russia
Image copyright: Greg Nash/The Hill
The Spin
Right narrative
Biden's comments caused an international firestorm and prompted many to believe the president was escalating US-Russia tensions during a time when Ukraine was attempting to negotiate peace talks. Harris's response was an attempt to clear up the problematic and unecessary gaffe.
Left narrative
Biden has already clarified that he was not calling for regime change in Russia - just expressing outrage over the horrors committed in Ukraine. Now Harris has reiterated that position. Everyone's on the same page.
Cynical narrative
Whether regime change is a formal policy or "more an aspiration" as Biden now claims, it is fundamentally misguided; regime change doesn't work and US foreign policy has a a record of decades of failures to prove it.