Julian Assange just received his latest tribute, from a very unexpected source [TWEETS]

Julian Assange and Wikileaks have received tributes from very noble sources for their work. But now, they’ve also received one from David Duke, the former Imperial Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK).

https://twitter.com/DrDavidDuke/status/796263508124037120

David Duke and the KKK have long been supportive of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. And because WikiLeaks has helped Trump (intentionally or not), those who support the new US President are very appreciative.

Support for Trump

Duke hasn’t given up on his racist or imperialist beliefs since leaving the white supremacist group. And his comments on Twitter reveal his strong support for Trump’s mission:

https://twitter.com/DrDavidDuke/status/796251511386935296

https://twitter.com/DrDavidDuke/status/796265074470060032

https://twitter.com/tdltdltdltdltdl/status/796266982622404608

Why Assange?

In the run-up to the US elections, Wikileaks released many emails about Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party. And it came in for criticism because it didn’t release anything about Donald Trump or the Republican Party. This led to accusations from the US government that Russia was using Wikileaks as a tool to damage Clinton.

Trump was clearly more favourable towards Russia and Putin than his opponent was. And several of his businesses, associates, and advisers are linked to financiers within both Russia and Putin’s inner circle. There is also speculation that Trump is being used as a “useful idiot” by Russia to destabilise NATO. Evidence for this includes Trump ignoring or denying American intelligence on Russia; and Trump spreading propaganda and misinformation that originated from Russian sources. One Mother Jones article even claims Trump has been “compromised” during visits to Moscow.

Unlike Putin, though, Assange has not spoken favourably of Trump. He has said that choosing between the two presidential candidates was like choosing between “cholera or gonorrhoea”.

What is Assange’s position, then?

Assange released a statement on the eve of the election, in which he said:

We publish material given to us if it is of political, diplomatic, historical or ethical importance and which has not been published elsewhere. When we have material that fulfils this criteria, we publish.

At the same time, we cannot publish what we do not have. To date, we have not received information on Donald Trump’s campaign… or any of the other candidates that fulfils our stated editorial criteria.

Assange also claimed:

This is why, irrespective of the outcome of the 2016 US Presidential election, the real victor is the US public which is better informed as a result of our work.

And:

if the press obeys considerations above informing the public, we are no longer talking about a free press, and we are no longer talking about an informed public.

WikiLeaks remains committed to publishing information that informs the public, even if many, especially those in power, would prefer not to see it. WikiLeaks must publish. It must publish and be damned.

Either way…

Regardless of whether or not Assange had links with Russia or Trump (which seems unlikely considering his comments), it is clear that the leaks helped Trump; that Trump will help Russia; and that Russia may have aided Trump.

But WikiLeaks and classified disclosures are not going away. And they do not exist in a vacuum. This means that, if the world wants Trump gone, parties opposing him (and their candidates) cannot afford any degree of corruption whatsoever. And neither can the media.

Get Involved!

– See other Canary articles about Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton and the US elections at The Canary Global.

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Featured image via Flickr