Badlands News Brief
The News Cycle is almost impossible to track these days. At least, to do so fully.
That’s where we come in.
In the Badlands News Brief, the Badlands Media team hand pick news items of interest from the previous days to give you an overview of the biggest goings-on relevant to the Truth Community.
Many items feature original (and subjective) commentary. Feel free to follow the corresponding link to see our writers’ Substack accounts and check out their other work.
Now, onto the news from Wednesday, March 20…
Top chaotic moments from the House Oversight hearing into Biden family's 'influence peddling'
Two former business associates of Hunter Biden testified publicly on Capitol Hill on Wednesday as congressional Republicans pushed forward with their impeachment inquiry against President Biden, leading to several tense and revealing moments.
Tony Bobulinski, a U.S. Navy veteran who formerly served as Hunter Biden's business partner, appeared publicly for the House Oversight Committee hearing. Jason Galanis, another Hunter Biden business associate who is serving a 14-year prison sentence, testified virtually from Federal Prison Camp, a minimum-security prison for male inmates in Montgomery, Alabama.
Democrats invited Lev Parnas, who was sentenced to 20 months for violations connected to campaign finance, wire fraud and making false statements, to testify about his work with Rudy Giuliani on Ukraine.
'Blatant lies': Bobulinski accuses Hunter Biden of lying under oath: Bobulinski said Wednesday that Hunter Biden lied under oath while speaking to lawmakers earlier this year about his father's involvement in his business dealings.
[…]
Bobulinski targets Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna, says he 'begged' him to look at phone evidence: Bobulinski said Wednesday he "begged" R: ep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and his staff to sit down with him to review the text message evidence he had on his Blackberry cellphone regarding the alleged wrongdoings by members of the Biden family.
[…]
Democrat taunts GOP committee chairs to hold Biden impeachment vote: Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., challenged Comer and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, to hold a vote on impeaching Biden during Wednesday's hearing, claiming they would do so if they had truly found enough evidence he committed high crimes and misdemeanors.
— Fox News
Our Take: “In a nearly six-hour hearing Wednesday, the Republicans recapped the extensive evidence of Biden Crime Family corruption while the Democrats, again, made an entire congressional proceeding about President Trump. While I love live coverage, the benefit of watching these hearings on replay is the ability to skip through the hysteria.
At one point, Jamie Raskin seemed to accuse Jared Kushner of involvement in Jamal Khashoggi’s murder. AOC claimed that RICO is not a crime. Dan Goldman did his best impression of Adam Schiff, and Jared Moskowitz screeched at the committee chair to immediately hold an impeachment vote.
Over the weekend, Biden mocked the proceeding, saying, ‘And the biggest joke of the night: an impeachment inquiry. Imagine believing something so baseless that has a zero chance of succeeding.’
As of press time, President Trump has refrained from speaking publicly about the hearing.
Given the low bar that was established during the 117th Congress, impeachment should be a done deal. Unfortunately, the uniparty has threatened the Republican majority, and that appears to be enough to keep the matter stuck in hearings.
It’s also important to remember that you cannot impeach an illegitimate president, and that exposure benefits the American People. To that end, the contentious hearing mostly consisted of congressional bickering, and the American People’s biggest takeaway is that the forum has zero credibility.”
Despite Bans, Number of Abortions in the United States Increased in 2023
New findings from the Monthly Abortion Provision Study show that an estimated 1,026,690 abortions occurred in the formal health care system in 2023, the first full calendar year after the US Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization overturned Roe v. Wade. This represents a rate of 15.7 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age,* and is a 10% increase since 2020, the last year for which comprehensive estimates are available. It is also the highest number and rate measured in the United States in over a decade.
This increase demonstrates that people continue to seek and obtain abortion care despite the drastic reduction in abortion access in many states. Since the Dobbs decision, in 2022, 14 states have banned abortion with limited exceptions.
— Guttmacher Institute
Our Take: “I have always felt that there is a PSYOP surrounding abortion that few perceive.
Some issues, like how to manage life, death and birth, carry with them deep philosophical struggles that are... meant for us to struggle with as a civilization.
So let me just lay out that I think the PSYOP is the very notion that there is one simple answer to the abortion debate and that, eventually, one side will win. In my books, it has been used as a wedge being driven deeper and deeper in between the left and the right; a blade of divisiveness.
That being said, there are obviously deeply corrupt aspects within the left wing take on abortion — mainly that they promote using it as birth control while citing extreme cases as justification for their policies. Deception is not a moral position.
If abortion is on the rise, I don’t believe an argument truly exists to say that this is the sign of a healthy civilization.
At the same time, when it comes to the abortion issue and others like it: remember that it has been weaponized. Hold your principled position, but do not submit to the will of the enemy, which is to use the polarizing nature of this issue to cause you to believe that your neighbor is the enemy.”
Could Kevin McCarthy REALLY Be Trump’s Next Chief of Staff!?
According to a report from Bloomberg, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) is under consideration for Chief of Staff should former President Donald Trump retake the White House in November’s presidential election. McCarthy allegedly turned down the role during Trump’s first presidential administration — opting to compete for the Speakership instead, ultimately losing the leadership battle to Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI).
Citing anonymous sources, Bloomberg contends that former President Trump sees McCarthy as possessing valuable assets as a Chief of Staff, including his knowledge of Capitol Hill, his experience in government budgeting, and his alignment with the former President on “regulatory priorities.”
However, the former Speaker is not without his detractors among former President Trump’s most outspoken supporters — including Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who spearheaded McCarthy’s ouster as Speaker.
— National Pulse
Our Take: “My gut tells me that this is another product of fake news. It has all the classic earmarks, with vague assertions and anonymous sources. Of course, I’m also hesitant to rule anything out in this clown world, so we shall see.
Like it or not, Trump and McCarthy have a relationship. Trump endorsed McCarthy for the speaker position, and despite America First’s disdain for the California Republican, there may well be more to their connections.
That all being said, 45 has been largely silent on the matter, and the news has really only served to spin everyone up into a frenzy over unsourced and vague reporting by legacy media. Again.
Let’s see what happens.”
Biden, Lenin, and Immigration Language
As an historian, it has been fascinating to watch the left try to impose new language to describe people in the country illegally.
The left has gradually pushed accepted language away from “illegal aliens” (the term in law), to “illegal immigrants” (the most common term), to “undocumented immigrants” (the left’s current favorite term), and now to “newcomers” (the Joe Biden White House’s latest experiment in gaining language dominance).
It all reminds me of Vladimir Lenin’s great language coup of 1903.
The Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party met secretly in Brussels. (The Czar’s secret police made it impossible to meet openly in Russia). At the meeting there was a split between Lenin’s hardline revolutionary faction and a more moderate democratic wing. Lenin’s faction was the smaller group, but they claimed the title Bolshevik (which means “greater faction” or majority). Group with the most votes were foolish enough to accept the title Lenin gave them, which was Menshevik, meaning minority.
That language dominance and branding gave Lenin an enormous advantage in the following two-decade struggle to overthrow the Czar and create Soviet Russia.
At least as far back as the French Revolution, the left has had a passion for labeling things and ideas to gain language dominance.
[…]
This process of normalizing weird and radical ideas goes on constantly on the left. Think of pushing transgenderism on children, kneeling during the pledge of allegiance, ignoring the destruction caused by the Black Lives Matter riots, etc.
The problem for the left is that illegal immigration may be the battlefield on which they can’t win.
— Real Clear Policy
Our Take: “The progression of language from ‘illegal aliens,’ to ‘illegal immigrants,’ to ‘undocumented immigrants,’ and now to ‘newcomers’ is a very revealing arc.
It offers us a curriculum-worthy example of how to use language to control thought— thus controlling the Overton Window.
Even Biden’s gaffe with the word “illegal” may have been an operation to more rigidly define the boundaries of the Overton Window.
Critical Race Theory underpins all the narratives seeking to reject the concept of immigrants, who have unlawfully entered the US, as ‘illegals.’ This is a form of communist ideological subversion.
It is a reminder how important it is to set the terms of the debate and the definition of key terms if you’re ever in a position to converse with someone meaningfully across the political divide.
Watching the enemy focus on attempting to control the terms of the conversation is informative. Being keen to this dimension of narrative warfare, and revealing it to others, is an excellent form of situational awareness to be cultivating.
I do not consent to the new definitions proposed for words like hate and racism.”
Former Haitian Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe says there's a 'total void of law and order' on stricken island, as power station attacks leave much of capital in darkness
Haiti descended into darkness overnight as gangs attacked electrical stations, leading Former Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe to call for law and order to be restored on the island.
Nearly 1.5 million Haitians are on the brink of famine as armed gang leader Jimmy 'Barbecue' Cherizier attempts to seize power.
The nations power company announced on Monday that four substations in the capital and elsewhere, 'were destroyed and rendered completely dysfunctional.'
As a result, swaths of Port-au-Prince were without power, including the entrance to the U.S. embassy, the Cite Soleil slum, the Croix-des-Bouquets community and a hospital.
[…]
Cherizier, a former police officer turned gangster, has claimed responsibility for the latest surge in attacks, and said his goal is to capture Haiti's police chief and government ministers and prevent outset Prime Minister Ariel Henry's return to the Caribbean nation.
Barbecue's threats will have struck fear into the hearts of many Haitians, with his reputation for burning people alive - something he has long denied - preceding him.
— Daily Mail
Our Take: “Haiti’s new Prime Minister, Jimmy 'Barbecue' Cherizier, is reportedly acting a bit erratic. ‘Nearly 1.5 million Haitians are on the brink of famine as armed gang leader Jimmy 'Barbecue' Cherizier attempts to seize power.’
It’s noteworthy that PM BBQ is a former police officer turned gangster, and claims his goal is to capture Haiti's police chief and government ministers. He is committed to preventing former PM Ariel Henry's from returning to the embattled nation.
A couple of things I find most interesting about what’s happening in Haiti:
PM BBQ denies allegations that he burns people alive. No update on the cannibalism.
The unrest is revealing new-to-us allegations about the significant aid we’ve provided the nation.
The article quotes Former Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe as saying, ‘the international community promised $9 billion in aid but Haiti only received half of it, and out of the half most if it went to the US military.’
I wonder if by ‘military’ he means Clinton Foundation?”
BONUS ITEMS
Leading Wisconsin Democrat Kimberly Zapata Found Guilty on All Counts Against Her in Voter Fraud Scheme Involving Military Ballots
In November 2022, Rep. Janel Brandtjen, then Chair of the Assembly on Campaigns and Elections, sent out an election fraud alert.
Rep. Brandtjen received three authentic military ballots to her home addressed to “Holly,” a woman who has never lived there.
Brantjen believed this was part of a scheme to steal votes in Wisconsin.
The Gateway Pundit has reported extensively on this 2020 voter fraud scheme in several battleground states where military ballots shockingly went almost entirely to Joe Biden. We posted evidence that this occurred in Michigan, Arizona and Georgia.
Later that week Wisconsin radio host Dan O’Donnell broke the news that Kimberly Zapata, the deputy director of the City of Milwaukee Election Commission, was fired for committing election fraud.
[…]
On Wednesday Kimberly Zapata was found guilty on ALL counts against her for illegally requesting military ballots.
— The Gateway Pundit
In a boost for EVs, EPA finalizes strict new limits on tailpipe emissions
After nearly a year of frantic lobbying and debate, the EPA has finalized strict new rules on vehicle emissions that will push the auto industry to accelerate its transition to electric vehicles.
The EPA expects that under the new rules, EVs could account for up to 56% of new passenger vehicles sold for model years 2030 through 2032, meeting a goal that President Biden set in 2021.
The regulations are a cornerstone of the Biden Administration's efforts to fight climate change.
Combined with investments the U.S. is making in battery and electric vehicle manufacturing, the auto regulations will help shift the U.S. away from relying on fossil fuels for transportation, a senior administration official said.
— NPR
US Military Desperately Seeking To Stay In Niger Despite Order To Leave
The Pentagon is desperately seeking to stay in Niger despite the military-led government telling US troops to leave in the wake of accusations from American officials that Niger could be poised to transfer uranium to Iran. Niger was outraged at the allegations and rejected them.
"The Pentagon is working with Niger officials, seeking a way for U.S. troops to stay in the country — a key base for counterterrorism operations in sub-Saharan Africa — following a weekend directive that they leave," The Associated Press reports.
Spokesperson Sabrina Singh said the US is seeking "clarification" from Niger officials and is still engaged in lengthy and direct” discussions with the junta leaders. Washington has warned the West African nation against forging deeper ties with 'rogue' actors like Russian and Iran.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has said that the Biden administration is "closely monitoring the Russian defense activities" there in order "to assess and mitigate potential risk to U.S. personnel, interests and assets." Wagner Group is one major Russian mercenary outfit which has made deep inroads into the region.
Over the weekend, Niger's military-led government which is called the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland (CNSP) declared US flights over Niger territory to be "illegal".
— Zero Hedge, citing Associated Press
We hope you enjoyed this brief look back at the major news items you might have missed in this ever-escalating and ever-accelerating news cycle as the Information War continues to rage on around us.
As always, if you have any thoughts on these news items or the MANY others swirling in the digital ether, drop into the comments below to share them with your fellow Badlanders.
Editor’s Note: I’ll be taking a short break from the Info War (and other work) to enjoy some R&R (and I’m not talking about Righteous Russia, for once,) but our own
is going to be handling the Brief in the interim. Thank you all for your continued support of this publication and this team. —Badlands Media will always put out our content for free, but you can support us by becoming a paid subscriber to this newsletter. Help our collective of citizen journalists take back the narrative from the MSM. We are the news now.
Thank you, Simon, for this report. For the last 2.5 years I have been the volunteer assistant director/client advocate in a faith-based pregnancy center. We realize that women seeking abortion are NOT the enemy. The battle has always been for the hearts and minds of our people regarding abortion.
I agree with your assessment that the lie of "pro-choice" has been a decades-long psyop carried out by THE enemy (Satan) and his minions in both the spiritual and physical realms. The history shows that they have been intentional and systematic in how they manipulate and demean women and men, destroy the nuclear family and remove God and the reality that all humans are "image-bearers" of the Creator. Women (and men) seeking abortion are lost, often, spiritually-dead victims of the propaganda spewed by the info-war machine that has permeated our society. Abortion is viewed as just one more "convenience" to our convenience-addicted society; when, in reality, it perpetrates the destruction of at least 3 lives each time it occurs. The number of total abortions is possibly greater than reported because now there are outlets for obtaining the "medical" abortion pills online. These incidents do not get reported. When I came to the realization that the liars have been in control for most of my adult life, I needed to become a better truth-seeker-finder. The covid-stolen s-election exposed the lying deep state cabal so blatantly that I got into the battle, first, by refuting the notion that there were "no treatments for covid in the ambulatory stage" to my friends and neighbors and then, eventually, to stand against the lie of "pro-choice" - ( just another example of the evildoers' language co-opting). Thank you so much for your reporting and analysis. God bless!
I like Simon’s Brief and Take on the rise in abortions despite the bans.
Abortion has become one of the weapons of division- to keep us fighting each other rather than Uniting to fight the real enemy. Who is the real enemy? I’d say it is the psychopaths at the top of the global cabal (we get closer to exposure all the time) who, without a shred of empathy, are pushing narratives that favor depopulation….but their main weapon is DIVISION and abortion is certainly a tool [they] wield with nonstop precision.
But [they] have taken it to such extremes, like the mother’s right to decide abortion hours before birth!, that we all are thinking about it from the moral viewpoint. The extremes demand a moral outcry which then makes it seem as though the division is all moral based…which deepens the divide…on and on.
Caught this article this morning:
https://libertysentinel.org/lawmakers-want-to-show-school-children-video-of-unborn-babies/
“In an effort to humanize the victims of abortion in the minds of young people, lawmakers in Tennessee, West Virginia, Iowa, and beyond are following in the footsteps of North Dakota with legislation to show high-quality video of unborn babies to children in government schools. Naturally, the abortion lobby is up in arms.
It is thought (hoped?) that:
“When people learn the truth about the humanity of children in the womb, and the barbaric procedures abortionists use to kill them, they change,” Rose explained when North Dakota passed a similar measure into law last year. “They become pro-life.”
We have learned about Planned Parenthood’s role in this, and the Feminist movement’s hidden roles, and I wonder how invaded the Foster Care System has been by those who wield the weapons of division. Foster Care in many places are full of horror stories. On top of that, how economically challenging to just give birth and raise one child!
There are many angles to the abortion issue … while we remain divided as a country to the underlying reality/phenomenon of “unwanted children”.