I was playing chess in a small town while staying with my in-laws.

There’s this older guy there who runs the whole thing, and always welcomes me extravagantly, telling the whole room that the chess champion from New York has come. He always talks to me about Putin, and the lying media. He seems to think highly of Trump, not least because of what he perceives as propaganda against him.

Anyway, I heard a hilarious expression from him.

When he was in a difficult position on the board, he added to his comments of despair and frustration:

“Важко Партії без Леніна”

“It’s difficult for the Party without Lenin.”