Putin’s grudge against Clinton stems from her alleged incitement of demonstrators in Ukraine, who protested against their Russian-backed and Paul Manafort-coached president, Viktor F. Yanukovich, after he pulled out of the European Union. Student demonstrators were murdered in the streets by police during clashes unforgettably chronicled in Evgeny Afineevsky’s Oscar-nominated documentary, “Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom.” Dismantling the EU is, of course, a key step in Putin’s plan to increase Russia’s power on the world stage, propelling his country to arguably play a role in Brexit and Trump’s withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal. Putin’s desire for Ukraine to once again be one with Russia led government agents to poison McCain-supported presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko, which left him badly disfigured though failed to prevent him from being elected thanks to a do-over vote demanded by Orange Revolution protestors. When Ukrainian Prime Minister and Orange Revolution co-leader Yulia Tymoshenko lost the 2010 presidential election—a year after a Russian company ceased pumping gas into Ukraine following disputes in the dead of winter—she was wrongfully imprisoned. The angry cries of her dissenters were unnervingly similar to the “Lock Her Up” chants aimed at Clinton, cleverly juxtaposed by Bryan.

Trump is portrayed as an ideal target for Russian coercion, with his big money, flip-flopping morals and financial situation made vulnerable when his doomed casino violated anti-money laundering regulations. The removal of pro-Ukrainian, anti-Russian language from Trump’s RNC speech causes McCain, with a humorless smile, to speculate, “Why would the Republican party remove a provision that would help a people who were invaded and slaughtered defend themselves? Interesting…” Lording over this dizzying web of corruption is Semion Mogilevich, a Russian crime boss as cartoonish a villain as Trump himself, whose claim that he’s merely a businessman “responding to the will of the people” is not a far cry from that of Al Capone, as portrayed by Robert De Niro in “The Untouchables.” The direct server link between Trump Tower and Russia’s Alfa Bank, coupled with Deutsch Bank’s support of Trump—not to mention the Russian ties of numerous Trump advocates, including Michael Cohen and Rudy Giuliani—further strengthen the case that our president has been caught red-handed.

Conspicuously missing from the talking heads assembled by Bryan is Senator Bernie Sanders, whose own presidential campaign fell prey to Russian bots aiming to divide the electorate through trumped-up allegations. Clinton is on hand to recount how Putin’s father pulled his wife out of the rubble during the Siege of Leningrad before nursing her back to health, a potent metaphor for what Putin intends to do with his country. The KGB’s bombing of apartments that caused shell-shocked Russian citizens to back him as he ascended to the presidency may have been ordered by Putin himself, a strategic maneuver McCain likens to “the rise of Hitler.” When Putin arrived in office, anyone who spoke out against his agenda was incarcerated or assassinated. One of his most revered critics, journalist Anna Politkovskaya, was murdered on his birthday. The only way Putin and Trump can succeed is by silencing the truth, since they are well-aware it is pitted against them.