REUTERS/Aaron P. Bernstein
Among the many details revealed in a federal criminal indictment against a Russian woman involved in a conspiracy to interfere in the U.S. political system: Russian trolls targeted Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) during his dying days. According to Department of Justice documents, members connected to Project Lakhta—which aimed to conduct “information warfare against the United States”—instructed that an Aug. 5 2017 article from right-wing outlet The Daily Caller, titled “McCain: Thinking a Wall Will Stop Illegal Immigration Is ‘Crazy,’” be shared on social-media with a mocking tone towards the then-senator, who was being treated for brain cancer. “Brand McCain as an old geezer who has lost it and who long ago belonged in a home for the elderly,” the group strategized. “Emphasize that John McCain’s pathological hatred towards Donald Trump and towards all his initiatives crosses all reasonable borders and limits. State that dishonorable scoundrels, such as McCain, immediately aim to destroy all the conservative voters’ hopes as soon as Trump tries to fulfill his election promises and tries to protect the American interests.”