The US tells American citizens in Ukraine to get out ASAP
The State Department also raised its risk level for US travelers in Ukraine to its highest threshold. Plus: Biden is considering sending troops into Eastern Europe in case Putin makes a move.
○ ● ●
It’s unclear if Russian President Vladimir Putin will invade Ukraine, setting off an intense chain reaction at home and abroad that the Biden administration has attempted to avoid with diplomacy for weeks. But if Putin does move, the State Department has a message for its diplomats and their families: Get out of Ukraine ASAP.
“As to President Putin’s intentions, we don’t know if he has yet made up his mind to invade,” a senior State Department official said on a press call with reporters on Sunday night. “But he is building the military capacity along Ukraine’s borders to have that option ready at any time.”
The official added that the government won’t be in a position to evacuate US citizens in the event of a Russian invasion. And according to the State Department, Russia has amassed upwards of 100,000 troops on Ukraine’s borders and is conducting disinformation operations to foment unrest in the region.
The official did not disclose the number of US citizens and nationals currently in Ukraine. “We don’t have have a solid number,” the official said to Matt Lee of The Associated Press. “And it’s not helpful to share estimated numbers with you.”
The State Department also elevated its travel advisory for Ukraine to Level Four — the highest advisory level — due to the increased threat of Russian military action. (The advisory was already at a Level Four due to the pandemic.)
“These decisions were made out of an abundance of caution due to continued Russian efforts to destabilize the country and undermine the security of Ukrainian citizens and others visiting or residing in Ukraine,” the official said.
Ukraine has received $650 million of security assistance in the past year, including a $200 million shipment of ammunition for the country’s frontline defenders, which the State Department says is the first of several. The US has committed nearly $3 billion in to security assistance to Ukraine since 2014. (Putin previously invaded and conquered the Crimean peninsula in Ukraine in 2014.)
The State Department officials were adamant that nothing has changed in the security situation over the weekend that led to the decision. But the White House has been clear that Putin could move at any moment. And it seems like it is trying to get ahead in Ukraine after the rocky evacuation of US citizens in Kabul last year after the Taliban recaptured the region at the end of the Afghanistan war.
● ○ ●
I’ve been curious to know if Biden will ultimately deploy troops in Ukraine, which is something he’s cautioned against to this point.
Helene Cooper and Eric Schmitt at The New York Times report that the president is considering deploying 1,000 to 5,000 US troops — plus warships and aircraft — to our allies in the Baltic states and Eastern Europe.
Cooper and Schmitt also report the number could increase tenfold if the situation deteriorates. None of the military options under consideration include deploying American troops to Ukraine itself.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday defended the US’s diplomacy-first strategy despite calls from some Republicans to send in the troops prior to an invasion.
“It is certainly possible that the diplomacy that Russia is engaged in is simply going through the motions and it won’t affect their ultimate decision about whether to invade or in some other way intervene or not in Ukraine,” Blinken said to Chuck Todd on NBC’s Meet The Press. “But we have a responsibility to see the diplomacy through for as far and as long as we can go, because it’s the more responsible way to bring this to closure.”
Biden is expected to make a decision as early as this week.
● ● ○
Both chambers of Congress are in recess and President Biden has a light schedule this week. So I thought it would be cool to fill the newsletter with some of your questions.
Ask me anything about the Biden administration, the House and Senate, issues like voting rights, police reform, Build Back Better, or the Russia-Ukraine situation. I’m also down to answer your questions about the newsletter or my reporting process.
You can reply to this email, tweet or DM me (@bymichaeljones) or, if you’re a premium subscriber, add a comment to the post on the website.
There’s no question not worth asking so fire away!
👋🏾 Hi, hey, hello! Good Monday morning. Welcome to Supercreator, your daily guide to the politicians and power brokers shaping how you work and live in the new economy. Today is National Compliment Day so be sure to let someone know what they mean to you. Send me tips, comments, questions — or just say hi: michael@supercreator.news.
Today in Politics
President Biden will return to the White House from Camp David. Then he will receive his daily intelligence briefing before meeting with his administration on its strategy for lowering inflation.
Vice President Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff will travel from Los Angeles to Milwaukee this morning where the vice president will receive a tour of a training and skilled trades employment program. She will also speak on how the bipartisan infrastructure law invests in the removal and replacement of lead pipes. Environmental Protection Agency Administration Michael Regan will also speak. The vice president and second gentleman will return to DC this evening.
The House is out.
The Senate is out.
Read All About It
Terry Nguyen on digital fashion:
Digital fashion, however, is not limited to clothing for avatars. It’s a growing fashion subculture that includes the digital design and modeling of real-world clothing, the uploading of designs for real and digital clothing onto the blockchain (so these files can be sold as NFTs), and even digital clothes rendered onto real people.
Scaachi Koul on Noom:
Perhaps the most significant difference is really Noom’s marketing itself, which has successfully reached beyond the traditional weight-loss audience of women to also target men. Noom ads feature a lot of men, and the app seems to have a higher percentage of male users than others in its category. (When asked, Noom would not confirm their user demographics.) Unlike wellness and diet programs marketed to women (like Gwyneth Paltrow’s juice cleanse routine), which are usually promoted using the flowery language of self-care and beach-body imagery, Noom presents itself as rooted in science. It’s based on psychology and hard facts. It’s a diet app that’s dressed up in a therapist’s blazer and slacks, giving you advice on how to change for the “better,” telling you that if only you could just get out of your own way, you could do the impossible and make this diet work for the rest of your life.
Jen Lyons, Sierra Kaul, Marcelle, Levine Swinburne, Vikki Vasquez and Gavin Kelley on TikTok:
TikTok is basically Twitter on street-grade crack. According to a Forbes interview with University of Southern California Professor Julie Albright, TikTok has "adopted the same principles that have made gambling addictive." A digital drug for anyone with a phone, and especially young people, the TikTok app uses random reinforcement — similar to a slot machine on the Las Vegas strip — to keep users scrolling. It has changed the way Americans tell and view stories, interact with others, and even receive news and information. Its influence borders on the obscene. TikTok has become part of the new normal of the past year, but instead of helping us heal, it has functioned as a nostrum to the new normal — a rather ineffective remedy from an unqualified source during the pandemic.
Julie Creswell on fast-food prices:
But making customers pay more for a burger or a burrito is a tricky art. For many restaurants, it involves complex algorithms and test markets. They need to walk a fine line between raising prices enough to cover expenses while not scaring away customers. Moreover, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. Chains that are operated by franchisees typically allow individual owners to decide pricing. And national chains, like Chipotle and Shake Shack, charge different prices in various parts of the country.
Ted Gioia on the US music market:
A decade ago, 40 million people watched the Grammy Awards. That’s a meaningful audience, but now the devoted fans of this event are starting to resemble a tiny subculture. More people pay attention to streams of video games on Twitch (which now gets 30 million daily visitors) or the latest reality-TV show. In fact, musicians would probably do better getting placement in Fortnite than signing a record deal in 2022. At least they would have access to a growing demographic.
Rachel Tashjian on boy brands:
But fans have a way of sniffing out celebrity brands that feel inauthentic. This recent wave of boy brands is defined by the way the various efforts stand on their own, each with a singular aesthetic poised to compete with the kinds of brands these musicians typically shop themselves.
Elaina Patton on Miranda’s coming out in the Sex and the City spinoff:
Consistent with Miranda’s lot this season, the [sex scene that broke Twitter] isn’t the most flattering depiction of a sexual awakening. Miranda loudly and drunkenly revels in the ecstasy within earshot of a bedridden Carrie, who is forced to urinate in a bottle following her failed calls to Miranda for help. But many fans were just happy it finally happened. And reconciling the significance of the story line with some of its less appealing moments has become a familiar feeling over the last eight weeks, it seems.
Last Not Least
Microsoft, Amazon and Google’s parent company Alphabet announced more acquisitions in ‘21 than any other year in the past decade • NYC’s new mayor is committed to making cryptocurrency happen • This year’s Super Bowl halftime show raises questions about who should be paid for their time and who should volunteer it
Thanks for reading! You can support this work by becoming a premium subscriber for $5/month or $50/year. (Already a subscriber? Purchase a gift subscription for a friend or loved one or buy me a tea.) If you know someone who would enjoy Supercreator, forward today’s issue to them and invite them to sign up so they never miss an update.