Letters from an American - Taking Authoritarianism Out For a Spin

Episode Date: October 15, 2026

October 14, 2026Ukraine’s military relies on two satellite systems related to Elon Musk’s SpaceX, and last night SpaceX restricted speed limits, debilitating Ukraine’s drones even as Russian forces launched strikes against the country’s infrastructure, President Zelensky noted that Russia’s strike, one of the largest attacks of the war, was deliberate and demonstrative, SpaceX is a defense contractor for the US givernment, SpaceX’s undermining of Ukraine supports Trump’s effort to help Putin fund his attacks on Ukraine, There was an outcry about the failing communications service that left Ukraine vulnerable to Russian attacks, Musk blamed Trump, The White House claimed it had no control over SpaceX, blaming Musk, The Pentagon is required to inform Congress if it pauses or downgrades intelligence sharing with Ukraine, but it has not, Trump asked European countries to thaw Russian assets and transfer them to a vehicle controlled by the US, a request they declined, The administration appears to be looking for a way to strip Rep Ilhan Omar of her US citizenship, Numbers from the BLS show inflation at 3.7% in September, ahead of August, and much higher than 2024, Trump is courting foreign actors to invest in his meme coin, US District Court Judge Kelly, ruled that Trump cannot bar CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House, noting that both free speech and due process are protected by the Bill of Rights. The Justice Department plans to appeal. To read this letter, click here:Listen on Apple PodcastsListen on SpotifyYou can also find Heather at:YouTubeBlueskyInstagramFacebookThreadsTikTok Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe

Hello, this is Michael Moss. Heather Cox Richardson is unable to read the letter today, so I will be reading it in her place. October 14, 26. According to Ukrainian presidential advisor, Serhi Best Kresnoff, last night, without warning, Elon Musk's SpaceX restricted the speed limits for the Starlink terminals Ukraine's military uses, known as Starshield, debilitating Ukraine's drones, even as Russian forces launched strikes against Ukraine's energy and critical infrastructure. The very infrastructure, Trump said, must be left alone. As Christopher Miller of the Financial Times reported, Russia launched 39 ballistic missiles and more than 120 drones against Ukraine last night, and, just as the night

before, Ukraine received no intelligence warning from the U.S. Last night, though, Ukrainian drone operators also found they could not control drones at speeds above 160 kilometers per hour, about 100 miles per hour. Last night's barrage was one of the heaviest attacks of the war, killing at least five Ukrainians and leaving at least 600,000 people without power. Ukraine President Volodemir Zelensky noted that the strike was entirely deliberate and demonstrative in its scale. Russia has never before shown such ostentatious disrespect toward the United States.

He continued, We ask America and everyone in the world who does not turn a blind eye to reality to respond and to respond forcefully. Russia has squandered the opportunity for de-escalationation. and has clearly chosen to continue its insane war of annihilation. Peace can only come through strength, and we ask America to remember this principle of Reagan's. Ukraine relies on two satellite systems related to SpaceX.

One is Starlink, which handles communications, defensive drones, and coordinating ground forces. The other is Star Shield, which is used for offensive purposes and is controlled by the U.S. government. It appeared at first that Elon Musk deliberately sabotaged Ukrainian military operations while they were underway in defiance of American national security policy. Senator Tom Tillis, a Republican of North Carolina, pointedly wrote to Musk on social media,

Please tell me these overnight disruptions to Starlink terminals in Ukraine were unintended, that SpaceX is doing everything it can to fix a temporary glitch. He continued, I'm confident that this does not reflect a change in SpaceX policy, because if so, intentionally degrading Ukraine's ability to defend itself might be construed as aiding and abetting a mass murderer. Can you confirm that's not SpaceX's intent? This would have been at least the second time,

time, Musk has used his power over communications to weaken Ukraine. In 2025, Joey Roulette, Castle Brian Lowe, and Tom Baumforth of Reuters reported that in 2022, as Ukraine was retaking land Russia had invaded, Musk ordered engineers to deactivate Starlink in crucial areas, leaving the Ukrainian military without communications and hamstringing their ability to gather intelligence or aim at targets. One of the people who told the journalists about Musk's 22 order noted that Musk had been able to reshape the front lines of the battle and that he had taken the outcome of a war into his own hands. SpaceX is a defense contractor for the U.S. government, currently receiving more than $16 billion through NASA, the Department of Defense,

the Space Force, the National Reconnaissance Office, and the Space Development Agency, with as much as $30 billion forthcoming if it exercises all its options. SpaceX operates the U.S. military's primary satellite communications, the same system limited last night in Ukraine, and launches most of the classified intelligence satellites for the U.S. Musk has spent about $366 million so far to swing the midterm elections toward Republicans. And space X's undermining of Ukraine supports Trump's effort to help Russian President Vladimir Putin fund his ongoing attacks.

That support for Russia flies in the face of traditional U.S. alliances with the Democratic nations of Europe, instead isolating the U.S. alongside O.S. autocratic Russia. But after a furious outcry today about the failing communication service that left Ukraine vulnerable to Russian attacks, Musk called out the difference between Starlink and Star Shield to blame the change on Trump. He wrote, Star Shield systems are owned and controlled by the U.S. government. Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the U.S. military and ultimately the president of the United States. States. Then he added, Starlink is a commercial service owned and controlled by SpaceX.

Usage of Starlink is limited to civilian or defensive activities and cannot be used for offensive military action, as doing so would be inappropriate for a commercial company. Barack Reveed of Axios reported that both systems, Starshield and Starlink, were restricted. Ravid also reported that while Trump blamed Musk for the service slowdown, the White House claimed it had no control over SpaceX, thereby putting the blame for the deadly slowdown on Musk. The fact that this was the only response of the White House to the profound betrayal of U.S. ally Ukraine tells its own story.

Senator Gene Shaheen, a Democrat of New Hampshire, the top-ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee noted today that the Pentagon is required to notify Congress if it pauses or downgrades intelligence sharing with Ukraine. If that happens, defense secretary Pete Hegeseth must provide that immediately. Foreign Affairs journalist Laura Rosen noted that Representative Jim Himes, a Democrat of Connecticut, the top-ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee said the committee has received no such notification and is trying to find out more information.

While Musk and Trump blamed each other for the technological shift that benefited Russia, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was in London, conferring with Prime Minister Andy Burnham and King Charles III. At 10 Downing Street, the official residence of the Prime Minister, a gathered crowd greeted him with enthusiastic applause. The official readout of their meeting revealed their agreement that Russia had no interest in peace and noted Russia's blatant indiscriminate attacks on civilians and energy infrastructure

since President Trump called for an energy ceasefire. This evening, Henry Foy, Paola Tama, Christopher Miller, and Amy McKinnon, of the Financial Times reported that last week, Trump asked European countries to thaw Russian assets that were frozen after Russia's invasion of Ukraine and to transfer those assets to a vehicle controlled by the United States in order to revive peace talks. European officials declined,

but the very idea added to questions about U.S. intentions. At home, Trump is taking authoritarianism, out for a spin. John McCormick, Michelle Hackman, and Sadie German of the Wall Street Journal reported this evening that the goal of administration officials in investigating the citizenship paperwork

of Representative Ilhan Omar, a Democrat of Minnesota, filled out by her father when she was a child in the 1990s after the family arrived in the U.S. from a refugee camp in Kenya, is to find a way to strip her of her U.S. citizenship and deport her. In their search on Monday, federal agents took Omar's cell phone,

notebooks, personal computers, and passport. Omar is running for re-election with election day less than a month away. Department of Justice rules cautioned prosecutors against taking any action that could affect an election or even create the perception that they are trying to do so. At a rally today in Bullhead City, Arizona, Trump doubled down on culture war troops when he told attendees that they must vote for MAGA Republican Andy Biggs because Democrats want to raise your taxes, annihilate your very secure borders,

decimate Arizona jobs, mutilate your children. They want to mutilate, cut your children. It is unbelievable what they do. Your son leaves as Jimmy and comes back. back home in three days as Janet, and they don't even ask you. He urged them to defeat the Democrat communists and vote for more money in your pockets, bigger paychecks for your families, lower taxes, less crime, a booming Arizona economy. All you have to do is vote Republican, and you're going to have all that and more. But new numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released today show that,

showed inflation up again last month, reaching 3.7%, up from 3.4% in August. Politics and National Security scholar Nicholas Grossman noted, In the supposedly horrific year of 2024, monthly inflation averaged 2.9% and was trending down rather than up. Morning Joe economic analyst Steve Ratner explained today how Trump and a couple doesn't insiders have made almost $2 billion on Trump's meme coin, while about two million Americans have lost $4.3 billion. It's like buying a pet rock just to lose a lot of money, he observed. Gabe Kaminsky, Madeline May, and Steve Riley of CBS News reported today that more than half of the people competing for seats at Trump's next coin dinner, use cryptocurrency exchanges that bar

U.S. customers, meaning they likely belong to people outside the U.S. The November 22nd dinner will include the top 185 holders of the dollar-signed Trump meme coin. Zach Everson, a researcher for the Progressive Consumer Rights Advocacy Group, public citizen, told the CBS news reporters, foreign actors used to need a backdoor to try to influence a president. Now, though, Trump is holding the front door open and inviting them in for a steak dinner. U.S. District Court Judge Timothy J. Kelly,

a Trump appointee, ruled yesterday that Trump had banned more than 70 journalists from CNN, MS Now, and Politico from the White House press room because he wanted more favorable coverage. That ban violated both free speech and due process, Kelly ruled, and he said Trump could not ban the organizations from the White House, although he did not address whether the administration could bar reporters from Air Force One or the Oval Office. Kelly noted that both free speech and due process are protected by the Bill of Rights,

as the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution are known. The Justice Department says it will appeal. David Fulkenflick of NPR noted that after the five major television networks, ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News, and NBC rallied together when Trump banned CNN, the Department of Justice announced it is investigating the networks for breaking antitrust laws. Yesterday, Trump posted two videos of people being mauled by lions and tigers. Last night, just before midnight, in the style of strongmen trying to prove they are supermen, he posted an AI video of himself warning a tiger off, then chasing the tiger,

tackling it, dominating it, and finally playing with the now docile animal. Letters from an American was written by Heather Cox Richardson. It was produced at Soundscape Productions, Dead of Massachusetts. Recorded with music composed by Michael Moss.