Russian presidential candidate Andrei Bogdanov is going to get creamed by establishment favorite and Alexander Putin protegee Dmitri Medvedev; of that there is little doubt. Despite that, Bogdanov won't pull out of the race and allow Medvedev to focus on his real opponents, paleo-commie Gennady Zyuganov and ultranationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky.
Instead, Bogdanov continues his ultimately doomed campaign, toting along his grandmother as a campaign adviser and routinely fortifying himself before public appearances with strong drink.
The vodka had been flowing for about 30 minutes when Andrei Bogdanov poured another shot for the plump, elderly woman in a green beret.
"Grandma, will you debate [Vladimir] Zhirinovsky in my place next time?" the curly-haired presidential candidate asked Klavdia Bogdanova, 85, with a wink.
Bogdanov's continued presence in the race infuriates the Russian establishment, which would prefer that he go someplace where the media can't find him. That has led to some interesting moments, including a post-debate scuffle a few days ago during which Zhirinovsky, according to this account:
...showered (Bogdanov's campaign manager Nikolai) Gotsa with obscenities, calling him a "complete idiot" and an "insane person." After debates, Zhirinovsky pushed Gotsa violently in the back and told security guards to take him into the hallway and "shoot him."
This is, of course, no idle threat in Russia, where political outliers tend to have short life expectancies. And Zhirinovsky has a history of physically assaulting people who annoy him, having apparently done it twice in the last campaign. Bogdanov promises to file suit against Zhirinovsky, demanding that he be stripped of his diplomatic immunity -- which is apparently the equivalent of our Constitutional protection that politicians can't be arrested on the way to a session of Congress.
Russians being Russians, Bogdanov's continued presence in the race is thought to be part of some grand Kremlin conspiracy. But mostly, it seems like he's just in it to have fun and tweak the establishment.
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