Beltway Insider: Trump Touts Disinformation Distraction, China, Ukraine, Senator Lindsey Graham

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Category: Beltway Insider

Published on Saturday, 18 July 2026 15:03

Written by Janet Walker

President Donald Trump, a ruthless strategist, has once again used his disinformation skills in an attempt to weaponize the nostalgia of his 2020 "Stop the Steal" campaign transforming it into big wins for the Republican Party in November.

The President's job approval rating, according to The New York Times for the period ending July 18, 2026, of those polled who approve of his effectiveness as President remained consistent at 39% and those who disapprove of his effectiveness as president has decreased by 1% to 58%. A slight 3% of the population polled have no opinion. Ratings are calculated weekly.

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Trumps Touts Chinese Disinformation Campaign in Primetime

In an eerily, similar strategic move, President Trump took to the airwaves to stoke the fires of public distrust in the electoral process by rousing a resting chaos contagious within his base and inserting public enemy number one, China, as the new Russia, an enemy that must be put down by any means.

By presenting this cycle of rhetoric, the president has crystalized a belief that the upcoming mid-term elections are not leaning in favor of the Republics. If nothing more the president understands, the simmering hatred within his base over the worn out theory of election interference in the 2020 election that he believes cost him a consecutive second term.

Granted, China is the number one enemy of the United States. Under the leadership of Chinese President Xi-Jinping, China remains the number one security threat that the united States will face in the future. China is not a threat that will dissipate. Xi-Jinping sees his nation as able through a process coined by former National Security Director and now CIA Director John Ratcliffe as, "rob, replicate, and repeat."

What this means for the American public has nothing to do with the electoral process. China will not backdown, and scurry back into the darkness of a different time, simply because Trump is president. And moreover, the Mr. Trump cannot run again. What he desires from this wave of rhetoric is stir any dormant issues of distrust, especially in the democrats, as voters begin to cast their ballots.

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China Remains a Global Threat

The current geopolitical atmosphere places the world into alliances, and for any economy to advance it needs to be able to produce goods services and products that can be exported to the world. For Xi-Jinping, the long game, and this is not a crystal ball theory, any person, of any age, will explain, the products that will be dominate in the global market are technology, defense, and intellectual property.

Utilizing the "rob, replicate, and repeat," theory has Xi-Jinping using espionage strategies, including having foreign students study at well-known American universities to work with major scholars for the purpose of replicating any projects.

This happens all the time. A list of Americans and Chinese Nationals working or studying in the United States who have committed crimes can be found here. These crimes include theft of proprietary information from a locomotive manufacturer, assessing the strength of United States military websites United States documents and information to China, hacking into the computer systems of hundreds of companies, governments, non-governmental organizations, stole trade secret technologies developed for use by the United States government to detect nuclear missile launches and to track ballistic and hypersonic missiles.

For President Xi-Jinping developing the most advanced military in the world is critical in the revved up arms race, which places him parallel to the United States. The recent testing of a nuclear missile launch from a submarine provided proof to the world, especially allies and enemies, that Jinping is intent on developing the world most advanced military.

What this means for the current geopolitical situation, and especially for Russia is that while Xi-Jinping will continue to support Russian President Vladimir Putin's effort in Ukraine, it is not good will or camaraderie, it is so Putin will be at a disadvantage when it comes to military weaponry, and more importantly a military. The loss of 300K soldiers monthly is placing Putin at a loss to Xi-Jinping's gain.

"Within intelligence agencies, a healthy debate and shift in thinking is already under way. For the talented intelligence analysts and operators who came up during the Cold War, the Soviet Union and Russia have always been the focus. For others who rose through the ranks at the turn of this century, counterterrorism has been top of mind. But today we must look with clear eyes at the facts in front of us, which make plain that China should be America's primary national security focus going forward," reported The Wall Street Journal.

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Trump's Primetime Points

For some, the 2016 election nearly a decade ago was rife with disinformation. It was the beginning of the disinformation age in politics, when candidates strayed from decorum and wrestled in the mud in order to secure the most coveted office in American politics. It was the Trump era.

Then candidate Trump and former Secretary of State Hillary R. Clinton were chosen to represent the respective parties in the November 2016 election. Clinton, who had a tough primary season as Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders campaigned hard against her and was able to secure a large percentage of the cotes, nearly 17 million. Unfortunately, his "anyone but Hillary" campaign rhetoric set the stage for trump's vicious attacks, and what many say is a deal made with Vladimir Putin to spread disinformation regarding Clinton, in order to destroy voter confidence.

Since the 2016 election, a widespread disinformation campaign was uncovered and investigated.

"The research details a vast campaign spearheaded by the Internet Research Agency (IRA) - a Russian company that has been described by the United States Intelligence Community as a troll farm with ties to the Russian government. The report says Russia had a particular focus on targeting conservatives with posts on immigration, race and gun rights. There were also efforts to undermine the voting power of left-leaning African-American citizens, by spreading misinformation about the electoral process," BBC.com reported.

Fast forward to January 2020, and election not so far in the rearview, that Americans will not remember the hoards of American citizens fueled by then President Trump to march on the Capitol building, where the 2020 election certification was underway.

The masses that gathered in Washington believed that the 2020 election was stolen, and this indoctrination foundational belief has remained a constant contentious point with the republican base. The MAGA base, and the extreme right wing, are slowly moving away from the polarizing rhetoric, as the sunset clause on President Trump's power is quickly approaching.

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Ukraine Pummels Russia in Drone Strikes

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has again pummeled neighboring Russia, launching a massive air assault which slammed into the Wildberries Warehouse, Russia's largest online retailer, demolishing the building, located less than 300 miles from Moscow, killing seven workers.

"Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv ‌had struck two logistics facilities used by Russia to supply components for drone production and navigation equipment. An oil facility was also hit, ⁠Zelenskyy wrote on X," NBC.com reported.

The victories for the Ukraine came one week after Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Ukraine ally passed away leaving the confirmation vote of the newest sanctions against Russia in limbo. Ukraine is also confronting internal issues, as Zelensky has replaced Mykhailo Fedorov, the architect of Ukraine's drone warfare program, due to internal issues between Fedorov and Oleksandr Syrsky, the Ukrainian armed forces leader.

The decision prompted protests in Kyiv and resignation from the entire cabinet which triggered a wider restructuring of the cabinet.

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Coronavirus Total

At the order of the President of the United States, the U.S. no longer recognizes the value of The World Health Organization. The CDC has recommended every person from age six months, including senior citizens should receive at least one shot of an updated COVID-19 vaccine, annually.  The death toll from Covid-19 has dramatically decreased, as has transmission of the virus. Even as confirmed new cases continue each week, fewer are dying from each new variants.

For the 7 days ending July 18, 2026, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases reported by the World Health Organization increased by 5,802 to 779,242,408. The total worldwide death toll did not increase over the past seven days increased by 92 to 7,115,911 deaths. The United States has stopped providing Covid data to the World Health Organization. (Data updated June 28, 2026, from the World Health Organization).

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Senator Lindsey Graham Dies

South Carolina Senator Lindsay Graham, a four term senator who championed Ukraine territorial independence, died suddenly this week. He was 71.

Senator Graham, who was running for a fifth senate term, had returned from the Ukraine where he had announced a breakthrough on sanctions against Russia, and was set to speak on NBC's Meet The Press, the following morning to discuss the Ukraine and other topics.

Neighbors reported seeing emergency services attempting to revive an older man, at the Georgetown home of the senator. Graham was pronounced dead later that evening. Preliminary results indicate that Graham died of an aortic dissection, which is a tear on the inner walls of the primary aortic vein leading to the heart. Further tests will be conducted, including a complete toxicology report, before any other information is released. An aortic dissection can be present with individuals with high blood pressure and can also be brought on by prescription and illicit drugs.

President Trump was notified at about 1:00 AM that Graham had died. "The president told NBC that his conversation with Graham "could've been his last call." "I got a message about 1 o'clock in the morning from one of the people in his office that he had passed away," Trump told "Meet the Press" anchor Kristen Welker. "I just can't believe it. He was like a member of the family to me,"' The Washington Post reported.

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Graham's Sister to Fulfil His Term

In the week since the senators passing, it was decided that Graham's sister Darline Graham Nordone should serve out the remainder of this term, which expires in January 2027. Graham was virtually uncontested in his home state, even as Democrats Dr. Anne Andrews, a pediatrician, is on the November ballot to run.

South Carolina law requires prompt resolution to the vacancy. Republican candidates can file beginning two weeks after the vacancy and the filing period is only seven days. The special election will be held on August 25, 2026.

"President Donald Trump urged Sen. Darline Graham (R-South Carolina), the sister of the late senator Lindsey Graham, to run for a full Senate term. Graham was sworn into the Senate on Tuesday after being appointed by South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster (R) to fill the final months of her brother's term. She has not said whether she plans to run for a full six-year term," The Washington Post reported.

Funeral plans for the late senator are planned for late July

Graham's "life and legacy" will be celebrated on Tuesday, July 28, in D.C. and the following day, Wednesday, July 29, in Columbia and Pickens County, S.C. 

For more information on President Donald Trump: Whitehouse.gov.

Sources: Various © Articles covered by Copyright protection.

Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade.  A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five award-winning screenplays "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She has also published "Unholy Alliances: A True Crime Story," a non-fiction narrative, "Days, Times, Seasons, and Events: A Collection of Poetry & Prose," and "Songs of Freedom: A Collection of Biblical Teachings," which can be purchased here. She is a member of the Authors Guild, the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a member of the International Federation of Journalists.