Putin is not a transactional dealmaker like Trump and his advisors believe, but rather an ideologue motivated by imperial ideas and the desire to be remembered as a great expansionist leader like Peter the Great and Catherine the Great; he would not sustain a million Russian casualties for modest territorial gains if he were engaged in cost-benefit analysis, which proves his motivation is ideological not rational economic calculation.
causalpending
Speaker
Michael McFaulEvidence Quote
“He's an ideologue. He is motivated by his ideas, his ideas, his imperial ideas...It's a guy motivated He wants to be Peter the Great. He wants to be Catherine the Great.”
Source
“They’re Not Like Us”: Michael McFaul on Autocrats vs. Democrats and the Fight for the 21st Century— Hoover InstitutionCreated: 8/11/2026, 7:32:51 AM
My Notes
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