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What next for Viktor Bout? By Monica Showalter FTA: What's scary is that Bout returns now to a different world. Ukraine is now an even bigger shambles than it was when the Soviet Union fell and arms are absolutely all over the place, ready for resale. Huge amounts of money and grift make it easier to get away with such deeds because a lot of people are doing it. What's scarier still is that he still has ties to Afghanistan, where Joe Biden irresponsibly left an even bigger stash of weapons ... and based on U.S. and EU sanctions, the Taliban needs money. Bout claims he had only sold arms to the Northern Alliance of Afghanistan which once fought the Taliban, but U.S. intelligence and others think he may have sold to al-Qaida and the Taliban and just not be saying. If it's true, than he likely still has some good business ties with that bunch and they've got some fresh merchandise for him to dispose of for them. Even if it's not true, he could likely make a deal with them. Both war zones are absolutely tailor-made for Bout's "services" and now Joe Biden cannot stop him. He'll sell these arms lying around to anyone -- Mexico's cartels, flush with cash from crossing fees from illegals taking advantage of Joe Biden's open borders might be one buyer candidate. There are many other potential examples, too, particularly in Venezuela, or Yemen, or Burma, basically any hellhole. But if just the Mexico trouble happens, and arms sales from Afghanistan or Ukraine go to the cartels, we will have come full circle then, wouldn't we? Biden left the arms lying around in Afghanistan and Ukraine, Biden enriched the cartels looking for arms to buy, and Biden let Bout out of the clink in a cheap exchange for a woke basketball player who checked the right boxes, effectively releasing a him like a sealed bacillus. Letting Bout out sounds like a perfect storm of trouble for the U.S., and this guy didn't like the U.S. to start with, given his willingness to sell weapons to FARC to kill Americans. Now he's got motive for revenge on the Americans that's cubed, based on those 14 years of hard time he did in Marion, Indiana. That dovetails with Putin's motive for revenge, based on U.S. money-flinging and weapons deliveries in Ukraine, and Russia's huge, bigger-than-American-casualties-in-Vietnam casualty count. https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2022/12/what_next_for_viktor_bout.html

On Thursday, news broke that WNBA player Brittney Griner was being released from a Russian labor camp and flown back to the United States. According to an announcement by the White House, Griner had been swapped for a notorious arms dealer named Viktor Bout, also known as the “merchant of death.” Quickly, the backslapping began, with Joe Biden taking full credit for the deal, but it didn’t take long before questions began to emerge. Former US Marine Paul Whelan has been held on false charges in Russia for nearly four years. Why wasn’t he prioritized in the deal? Then there is teacher Mark Fogel, who was sentenced to 14 years in prison for possessing medical marijuana (very similar to Griner’s charge). The White House won’t even acknowledge his plight, having not designated him as being wrongfully detained. As the Biden administration told it, though, Whelan was never on the table. Instead, the Russians insisted that the trade had to be for Griner or no one. Yet, astute observers noted how little sense that makes. Why would Russia want to make the choice easy for Biden? Wouldn’t they gain much more from making him make a choice between two Americans? And why would the Russians want to give up Griner before Whelan given that Griner is a public figure and obviously more valuable? Sure enough, there’s evidence emerging that the White House’s story isn’t exactly accurate. For example, NBC News originally reported via a senior government official that the Russians were offering either Griner or Whelan in the deal. Later on, the article was stealth edited to match the administration’s talking points. {snip} Further, consider the administration’s messaging on the prisoner swap. Karine Jean Pierre, the White House press secretary, touted Griner being a gay, black woman during her briefing in what appeared to be an attempt to justify her importance. Others in the administration toed the same line, with the press dutifully playing along. If Griner’s identity wasn’t a factor, why make such a big deal about it? There’s just too much here that doesn’t add up. That we are dealing with an administration that has made a habit of lying to the American people only makes the questions more prudent. Did Biden choose Griner because she’s famous and/or checks the right intersectional boxes over a former Marine who has been rotting away for nearly four years? It sure seems like it. At the very least, there needs to be a lot more investigation as to what exactly went on here. The original deal was bad enough, if not arguably necessary. But if the White House played identity politics with a former service member’s life, that would be a major scandal. https://redstate.com/bonchie/2022/12/09/it-sure-looks-like-biden-is-lying-about-the-brittney-griner-prisoner-swap-n671663 .

A Shameful Prisoner Swap 'Antiracism' is no way to conduct foreign policy Not three years ago, Brittney Griner refused to take the floor when the WNBA played the national anthem before tipoff. "I think we should take that much of a stand," she said at the time, arguing that "basketball doesn't mean anything in a world where we can't just live. We can't wake up and do whatever we want to do." Such is the plight, she said, of being black in America. Yet it was in part Griner's race, as well as her sexual orientation—she is a lesbian—that made her detention by Russia in February a high-profile news story and turned her case into a cause célèbre for activists and journalists, but we repeat ourselves. It is also why the Biden administration on Thursday struck an ill-advised deal to trade Griner's freedom for that of Viktor Bout, an arms dealer and weapons smuggler who was convicted in 2011 of conspiring to murder American citizens. Not included in the deal was Russia's release of Paul Whelan, a white, cisgender, heterosexual former Marine arrested in late 2018 on trumped-up charges. For all of Griner's complaints about being black in this country, she's gotten far better treatment than her white counterpart. Whelan told CNN in a phone interview Thursday from a remote Russian penal colony that "I am greatly disappointed that more has not been done to secure my release, especially as the four-year anniversary of my arrest is coming up. I was arrested for a crime that never occurred." Then there are the merits of the deal itself. Griner will be greeted as a hero when she touches down in the United States, but the Russian who will walk free is a dangerous thug who has earned his nickname: "The Merchant of Death." His release will do grievous harm to American national security—he was convicted for attempting to sell weapons to Colombian terrorists who would have used them to target American troops—and Politico reports that Pentagon officials are already raising the specter that his release will fuel "conflicts across the world." https://freebeacon.com/biden-administration/a-shameful-prisoner-swap/

Well, of course - Bout is notable but look at his history here with the cult - you really need to keep up with the context of the conversation BillyB. Showing results for 'Viktor Bout' in content posted in Politics, Polls, and Pundits. - Two Bills Drive

You have to be kidding me, right? Viktor Bout was one of the most notorious people that was sought after. Him leaving the aircraft in handcuffs were all over the news stations.

Here's the thing... if Biden hadn't got Griner, was still trying to get both Whelan and Griner but struggling to do so... I don't think anyone would be complaining. We get it... it's Putin, Russia. Not an easy person to negotiate with. We have no idea how Trump or his administration worked on getting Whalen back. BUT, Biden DID manage to come to terms with Russia. He gave up one of the worst men on the planet for a person who was breaking the law in the country she was in. If Trump did that, YOU'D be on here freaking out and sharing 40,291,342 tweets from leftists. This is who we just turned over to Russia: https://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/viktor-bout-merchant-death-sentenced/story?id=16080286

NICE FELLA: Meet the Merchant of Death, Viktor Bout. “This is the guy Presidentish Joe Biden just sprung from prison in exchange for a basketball player stupid enough to bring her personal stash of drugs into a country like Russia.” https://pjmedia.com/vodkapundit/2022/12/08/meet-the-merchant-of-death-viktor-bout-n1651909

He's literally freeing gun violence instigators while also parading around with Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer screaming for gun control. What an absolute joke. If you have convictions so strong for gun control, Viktor Bout being released should have been a non-starter.

Maybe, just maybe, Trump did not want to free Viktor Bout, maybe he thought the risk was too high. You freakin moron

I don't care if Trump didn't release Whelan. If Trump felt that Viktor Bout being released wasn't worth it, then this 2018 crap that BillStime was so upset about doesn't matter. They should have played hard ball and had both released. This wasn't just an American issue, this is a international issue. Hundreds of Thousands to Millions of people have died at the hands of people that dealt with Bout.

Why does that matter? Why are you worrying about Trump? The deal was done today. The same reason why Obama didn't close down GITMO (his campaign promise). There potentially could have not been a deal to be made. He could have also thought that Viktor Bout was too dangerous to want to be set free. You need to look at context. This isn't hard to figure out. The Russians gave the United States a lesbian, black, WNBA player that beat her wife, and brought illegal vape canabis oil to their country, and plead guilty. They traded an international arms dealer that would sell advanced weapons to people in civil wars (many times sold them to both sides of the conflicts/wars). How is that remotely an even trade? What makes you think he won't do this again, but this time in the comfort of his home in Russia?

How is that relevant? Negotiations didn't start until this year. But if you are trying with the "gotcha" moment, I believe if there was a swap to make at that time, I believe it should have happened. Viktor Bout is one of the most dangerous men on the face of this Earth. I think the return the US got was significantly underwhelming.

My biggest issue with this is the fact that an American Marine, who was wrongfully convicted of espionage, that the United States has also admitted was a wrongful conviction is staying in jail to rot. Griner was not wrongfully detained. She did bring an illegal substance into the country, admitted to it, and pled guilty. Do I think her punishment is harsh and wouldn't be as bad if she wasn't a prominent figure in the United States? Absolutely. However, she should have been put on the backburner before Paul Whelan got released. I guess he wasn't woke enough. I'm also no longer interested in Biden or anybody associated with this deal to ever talk about gun control again. Viktor Bout is nicknamed the "Merchant of Death" for a reason.

https://www.baynews9.com/fl/tampa/news/2022/07/14/wnba-s-griner-heads-back-to-russian-court-after-guilty-plea They can keep her... this would be like trading Josh Allen for Mac Jones. "Russian media have speculated that Griner could be swapped for Russian arms trader Viktor Bout, nicknamed “the Merchant of Death,” who is serving a 25-year sentence in the U.S. after being convicted of conspiracy to kill U.S. citizens and providing aid to a terrorist organization."

Why wouldn't he, with this administration. Putin: Hey, I'll do more prisoner swaps like Griner-for-Bout, sure NY POST 2:20 PM on December 09, 2022 Shortly after Brittney Griner landed in Texas early Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said more prisoner exchanges are possible between the two countries. Putin said “everything is possible” when asked about future swaps, noting that “compromises have been found” to clear the exchange of the WNBA star for notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout. “We aren’t refusing to continue this work in the future,” the Russian strongman added after a summit in Kyrgyzstan. “Whether this could set stage for a dialogue with the U.S. is a separate issue,” the leader said. “We didn’t set the task to move from those talks to something else, but they do create a certain atmosphere.” “A certain atmosphere” is putting it mildly. Having suckered this administration into handing back their best arms trafficker and terrorist supplier, why wouldn’t Putin want to see what else he can get out of Biden? https://nypost.com/2022/12/09/putin-says-more-us-prisoner-exchanges-are-possible/