>>Yet it’s even more fantastical that American papers didn’t break and aren’t really covering this story...

I think it has more to do with journalistic standards; they're trying to verify that the document is legit, and will almost certainly publish if/when they can verify it (if not the WSJ, then WaPo or NYT)

I love The Guardian, but they do seem to sometimes publish first, verify later.

Personally, I think it was more about Putin trying to get revenge on Clinton, and taking opportunistic advantage of a pathologically narcissistic candidate in the wings. They certainly knew the kind of person he was, whether or not they had kompromat. The overarching aim was to destabilize Western democracies - and they certainly seem to have gotten value for money/effort - but the Republican party has been heading in this direction since Nixon's Southern Strategy. which gathered up many Dixiecrats into that party. It's been a scam all along, using first resistance to Civil Rights, then social issues to get white voters to vote against their own interests - and now it's caught up with them. Sadly, we all have to deal with their mess.