Badlands News Brief
The Mask Comes off as the Nation Watches
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.
Some items feature original (and subjective) commentary. Feel free to follow the corresponding link to see our writers’ corresponding Substack accounts and check out their other work.
Now, onto the news from Tuesday, December 19 …
Colorado Supreme Court disqualifies Trump from 2024 ballot
The Colorado Supreme Court has disqualified former President Trump from appearing on the state's ballots in 2024.
The disqualification, which was made under the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, is related to the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.
Tuesday's 4-3 ruling is stayed until January 4 because of likely appeals. Three justices on the Colorado Supreme Court dissented.
"We do not reach these conclusions lightly," the court's majority wrote. "We are mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions now before us. We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favor, and without being swayed by public reaction to the decisions that the law mandates we reach." — FOX News
Our Take: “So it’s option four, then.
You will recall that, in the Badlands News Brief on December 7, I laid out the potential outcomes of Trump’s Colorado Supreme Court Appeal:
Upholding the District Court's Findings on both the 14th Amendment and the Insurrection.
Overturning the District Court's Findings on both the 14th Amendment and the Insurrection.
Upholding the District Court's Findings on the 14th Amendment and overturning the ruling on the Insurrection. This is the right call.
Overturning the District Court's Findings on the 14th Amendment, and upholding the ruling on the Insurrection. This removes Trump from the ballot.’
They’ve gone with option four, and have decided to prevent President Trump from appearing on the ballot in Colorado. This case has always been planned for appeal to the Supreme Court, and it will happen before the end of the year.
As we’ve been covering, this case has implications on the ~22 other Section 3 challenges across the country — and the Colorado courts have gone father than any other court so far.
As I see it, there are three key questions before the courts.
Does Section 3 of the 14th Amendment apply to the President?
Was January 6 an insurrection?
Did President Trump incite that insurrection?
The courts have provided contradictory judgements on the first question, but there are now two courts that have affirmed the second and third.
In my opinion, President Trump’s lawyers in the case have not argued effectively against the January 6 narrative — so much so that I hope the President changes horses before SCOTUS. The insurrection ruling must be overturned, or progressive courts — like those in Colorado — will take this a whole lot further.
If you want to know where your 2024 election surprises are going to come from, take a look at Colorado. There’s a lot of moves being made to weaponize the government against its political opponents.” —
Another Take: “Coordination = Control.
If you think it's a coincidence that the following storylines are converging in the War of Stories as we crest the rise before the flood that is 2024, you haven't been paying attention:
The Establishment is pulling out all the stops to prevent Trump from being an OPTION, never mind the winner.
Trump's Trial, which I have argued will serve AS his campaign for said election will run in parallel with the battle for candidacy.
The Biden Admin finds itself hemmed in on all sides, both politically and publicly, as Establishment Dems look to remove the Proxy President (fearing whose Proxy he really is,) while trying to mitigate damage to the Uniparty in the Collective Mind.
All of these converging storylines simultaneously embolden Trump's base, while making him a more sympathetic character to the reachable middle (and even some of the Left.)
We're in Act 2 of the Three-Act structure of the Saga of Donald Trump.
Act 3 = Resolution, which means Justice.” —
Ramaswamy to withdraw from Colorado primary unless Trump is on the ballot
Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy excoriated the Colorado Supreme Court's Tuesday decision to remove former President Donald Trump from the state ballot and called on his fellow Republicans to withdraw from the state's primary unless Trump's name appears on the ballot.
The court on Tuesday determined that Trump engaged in an insurrection by inciting the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol Riot and was therefore ineligible to run under the 14th Amendment. Trump's campaign has vowed to appeal to the Supreme Court. Ramaswamy contended that the decision amounted to a political move to disqualify Trump amid his mounting lead in the polls.
"This is what an *actual* attack on democracy looks like: in an un-American, unconstitutional, and *unprecedented* decision, a cabal of Democrat judges are barring Trump from the ballot in Colorado," Ramaswamy declared. Having tried every trick in the book to eliminate President Trump from running in this election, the bipartisan Establishment is now deploying a new tactic to bar him from ever holding office again: the 14th Amendment."
"I pledge to *withdraw* from the Colorado GOP primary unless Trump is also allowed to be on the state’s ballot, and I demand that Ron DeSantis, Chris Christie, and Nikki Haley to do the same immediately - or else they are tacitly endorsing this illegal maneuver which will have disastrous consequences for our country," he added. "Today’s decision is the latest election interference tactic to silence political opponents and swing the election for whatever puppet the Democrats put up this time by depriving Americans of the right to vote for their candidate of choice." — Just the News
OUR MEGA TAKE: “I think Trump has been using a careful strategy to gain the most lawful support, so that when the ‘storm’ is triggered, it’s a guaranteed win for him, the people, and civilization as a whole.
’Pay to Caesar what is owed to Ceasar.’
In this case, in terms of law and legal systems, a righteous actor, like Trump, can’t and won’t change a legal system through contempt, vigilante methods or bull in a china shop tactics. Caesar, as the head of the civil government (legal structure) has to be honored (respected) to be changed lawfully (in concert with God’s Will—the law). By God or God’s Will, I mean the necessary conceptual foundation of every legal system on earth, which is always theistic, because all law operates within a trust structure of free will, rights, contracts, and honor.
Briefly, a legal system is always, without fail, in all its varied forms, a contract between citizens as to how they will defend and advance their rights in society. It might be an autocracy, and tyrants are good at using various forms of social engineering to convince people they have no choice, but they always have a choice. Hence, people must be made to not use their free will choice (via dumbing down, cultural enforcement mechanisms, and so on), which isn’t the same as not having a choice at all.
In law, honor is the concept of respecting the rights of others (collective rights are legal policies), which is God’s supreme law commandment for men insofar as managing civilization. Hence, a good citizen seeks to change legal policy via the right process (the legislative process), instead of doing whatever he wants. Even if the system is unjust, it’s still an expression of societal will, the people’s will, and it has to be respected, partially because it ensures the greatest stability.
Free will is the highest law, and therefore, no one, including God, would violate man’s will, especially civilly and legally. This is one reason why Jesus didn’t overturn the kingdoms of men, he ‘paid to Caesar what is owed to Caesar,’ while he protested via overturning the tables of the temple money changers, and other forms of respectful protest.
Trump had to exhaust every legal avenue of getting the people and the system to do the right thing. Now that they have failed, the door for actions outside of this system can be pursued. There’s still time, of course, for the system to come around—I don’t expect Trump and the military to initiate anything tomorrow. But if they do, it will be due to a genuine and clear and present emanation of collective political will. That’s why, I suspect, he had to go through this long drawn out process. It was to rouse the people out of their slumber and cause them to use their greatest weapon of all—free will choice.
On another note, I can’t help but wonder if Vivek is in some way playing along with Trump, or at the very least, unwittingly helping him.
By drawing this line in the sand, Vivek and Trump are dealing massive blows to the already well gutted of any respect GOP and their cadres of feckless candidates.
Tucker’s casual endorsement of Vivek is also striking. The clear indication across the board, be it Democratic or Republican, is that the old-guard and the old way cannot be seen as legitimate any longer. Of course, after 2016 and Trump’s total refutation of the legitimacy of establishment candidates and politicians, this was already well underway. But the bitter pill of acceptance by the general population in this regard, that was still invested in the old guard, was unmoistened by nearly everyone. No one knew, then, that by 2020 and certainly by 2023, the facade of pre-2016 politics was dead and buried, at least for a few generations.
Although I am tempted to think Trump had all this figured out years ago, I think any good general knows the best laid plans are always subject to random and unanticipated change. Thus, Trump, being a clear master strategist anticipated uncertainty, and cast many lines in the water to see what would catch a bite, and in doing so, it would also push the winds of political interest of the general population in a certain direction.
When the campaigns for 2024 began, who would have thought that before 2024, every establishment candidate, including the Democratic ones, would be totally discredited, leaving only, of course, Trump, and, as I certainly didn’t expect, Vivek.
Love him or hate him, Vivek is playing his part beautifully in my view. I agree with Tucker when he said on Timcast IRL that he thinks Vivek has only deepened his resolve and, at least, his ability to do what he’s doing. Whether or not he’s genuine, I’m still not 100% certain of. But if he is playing a game for the globalists or his own self interest, I can’t see the angle. That’s no refutation of the possibility, of course.
My question: Is Vivek himself being played by the 4D chest master, Trump, or is he, like potentially others (DeSantis) also potentially playing a shadowy game with benevolent objectives?
One thing is clear—the Neocon groomed and preened candidate, Nikki Haley, looks more and more like the teachers pet, with all her shallow passion and well crafted media appearances.
Lastly, although this is probably not a popular opinion, but if Vivek is genuine and indeed in someway working at least alongside Trump, I would sure love the both of them to lay down some eviscerations of the old-guard and their legion of thoroughly propagandized media sycophants.
Bring on 2024!” —
The Jonathan Majors verdict forces Disney to hit the reset button on Marvel — and that may not be a bad thing for Bob Iger
The Marvel Cinematic Universe — once the most untouchable brand in Hollywood — just took another blow after a year of gut-punches.
Jonathan Majors, who was supposed to be a cornerstone of the MCU's next phase as villain Kang the Conquerer, was found guilty of assault and harassment. Majors was acquitted on other charges, including assault with intent to cause injury.
Majors, who had already appeared as the villain in February's "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" and the second season of Disney+'s "Loki," was to reprise the role in Marvel's 2026 movie, "Avengers: The Kang Dynasty."
But within an hour of being found guilty of the charges — which stemmed from an incident in March involving his ex-girlfriend — Disney cut ties with Majors in what the industry pretty much agrees was a no-brainer.
"I wouldn't hire him," one producer, who spoke anonymously for fear of retaliation, told Business Insider. "He was on his way to being big, but I can't have him front a movie now."
The move followed Majors being dropped by his management and PR teams and Disney's specialty arm, Searchlight Pictures, pulling his star vehicle "Magazine Dreams" — a Sundance acquisition — from its schedule.
The jolt to the Marvel machine comes at a time when the Mouse House, its CEO Bob Iger, and its money-making franchise could use some good news. — Business Insider
Our Take: “Could be nothing. Could be something trying to look like nothing, but:
I've seen a strange Macro developing in the War of Stories as we head to 2024, which combines the concepts of the Culture War, the Q Op and the resurfacing Epstein thread.
Yesterday, Jonathan Majors, the actor tasked with being the new (and decidedly unpopular) big bad of the biggest franchise in Hollywood (Marvel, which is in free-fall,) was found guilty on several charges related to domestic violence, prompting Disney to fire him.
Not only does this give the company a black eye, it also forces them to pivot in the midst of a swath of interconnected billion-dollar story arcs Majors was a plot fulcrum within.
Seemingly separately, Bob Iger and Disney are in the midst of a Crisis Cascade of lawsuits, box office failures and cultural exposure, as well as a board seat proxy war against Trump loyalists.
Q told us, "Disney is a distraction."
Does this Disney Crisis Cascade have to do with Epstein back in the news?” —
No, Ukraine Is Not Starting To Lose The War, Says An Agitated Zelensky
According to the AFP, fresh polling shows President Zelensky's popularity has dropped precipitously among the Ukrainian population, with numbers showing that general trust has dropped to 62% compared to 84% one year ago.
This is perhaps why Zelensky was generally described as agitated at various points in an end-of-year Q&A session he gave Tuesday before an international press pool in Kyiv. At one point he responded flatly to a BBC reporter's question about whether he thinks Ukraine is beginning to lose the war with a curt "no". Here's how things went from near the start of the presser:
Next Zelensky is asked a series of seemingly complex questions on domestic politics, one of which is about the possible creation of a government of national unity which would include technocrats - unelected leaders who are picked for their expertise.
The president seems visibly irritated by the questions and keeps shaking his head and frowning, saying they are too long and confusing.
"You’re talking too much," he says, "I want you to ask a specific question." — ZeroHedge
Our Take: “In just under two years, Zelensky has gone from a real-life version of Luke Skywalker standing up to Darth Putin and his evil empire to a vain, greedy, mewling shrew on the world stage, only interrupting his self-aggrandizing international campaigns to beg for the time and labor of other nations (through our money,) in order to reprimand the same populaces for not sending their children to die in the corrupt, frozen mires he was installed by Globalist puppet masters to lord over.
Thus, every time I see a new Zelensky headline, replete with its accompanying header image of the little gremlin looking increasingly irate and petulant, the wider I smile, as I can see that the Prussian Proxy President is losing whatever support still remained to him within even the leftist persuasion of the Collective Mind.
We may be ruled by tyrants, but even they need the mandate of a great number of people in order to rule effectively.
They’re losing it … rapidly.” —
BONUS ITEMS
Southern border hit by record number of migrant encounters in a single day as thousands flood into Texas
The besieged U.S. southern border saw a record number of migrant encounters in a single day on Monday, as thousands flooded into Eagle Pass, Texas, amid a broader surge in recent weeks that has left authorities overwhelmed.
There were over 12,600 migrant encounters on Monday, Customs and Border Protection sources told Fox. That does not include the thousands still waiting for processing in the Del Rio Sector on Monday evening after a surge of migrants into Eagle Pass. The number includes over 11,000 illegal immigrant apprehensions and over 1,600 encountered at ports of entry.
As of Tuesday morning, sources told Fox that agents are still processing and transporting more than 4,500 migrants at the busy crossing point, with more than 5,300 already in custody and facilities at 260% over capacity. — FOX News
Tennessee sues BlackRock citing 'misleading' ESG strategy
The U.S. state of Tennessee has sued BlackRock (BLK.N) alleging the world's largest asset manager breached consumer protection laws by making "misleading" statements about its environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) investment strategies.
According to a court filing, the state of Tennessee has alleged BlackRock downplayed the extent to which ESG considerations drive the firm's investment strategies and their affect on companies' financial performance and outlook.
BlackRock said they rejected Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti's claims. "BlackRock fully and accurately discloses our investment practices and our approach to proxy voting," the asset manager said in an emailed statement to Reuters.
Earlier this year, Skrmetti had demanded ten major asset managers provide information over how they seek to tackle climate change, as part of an investigation into potential breaches of consumer law.
Skrmetti and 20 other Republican state attorneys general also wrote to asset managers in March suggesting they are breaching their fiduciary duties in their handling of environmental or social issues.
Companies and investors increasingly consider factors such as climate change and workforce diversity, which they say can affect company performances and reputations. The approach has received backing from Democratic leaders, including U.S. President Joe Biden, who used his first veto of his presidency to defend a rule on ESG investing.
Meanwhile, Republicans, many from energy-producing states, have joined a growing chorus challenging ESG. — Reuters
Tucker Carlson: "I Kind Of Like Vivek" For VP
While many on the right see Tucker Carlson as a slam-dunk VP candidate for Donald Trump in 2024, Tucker - who we suspect wants nothing to do with the swamp as he grows his new empire - has different ideas.
"I kind of like Vivek," the former Fox News host told an audience at Turning Point USA's AmericaFest event, referring to Vivek Ramaswamy. "Everyone beats up on Vivek for being ‘he’s a phony’ and all this stuff."
"I’ve covered a lot of campaigns going back to 1992 and I’ve noticed this in many candidates and I noticed it in him – the process of running for president and speaking three times a day and having people throw hostile questions in your faces causes you to change – they all change during these campaigns for real, inside," Carlson continued. "And I feel like Vivek’s positions have gotten much more sincere since the beginning of this."
"I watch him with Nikki Haley and I’m like this is a guy who’s very offended by her views for real, he’s not attacking her because she’s a woman, he’s attacking her because he actually thinks her views are terrible for the country he lives in and I love that," Carlson concluded. — ZeroHedge
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.
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I cannot believe I am the only person thinking that a State Court cannot find him guilty of a Federal crime where they had no jurisdiction and use that false verdict as the basis to enforce Election interference in their state. This is absolute lunacy. Worse than a Clown Court. And calling the "Majority" of this State Supreme Court ruling anything but politically biased is like saying the President of Harvard has a right to have the title of Doctor in front of her name.
Bizzaro World
PS There is no "starting" about the status of Ukraine losing the war.
Never a dull moment in the War of Stories!
Bravo Justin for your take on the "Just the News" article citing Ramaswamy. "By God or God’s Will, I mean the necessary conceptual foundation of every legal system on earth, which is always theistic, because all law operates within a trust structure of free will, rights, contracts, and honor." Such a concise and accurate premise - thank you!!
For those who haven't read it yet, "The Fourth Turning" was prescient on what this time in our history would produce (prescient - not prophetic - in that it used known information and trends to calculate likely, almost unavoidable, events).
BB - "In just under two years, Zelensky has gone from a real-life version of Luke Skywalker standing up to Darth Putin and his evil empire..." Nice tie-in to you Disney/Marvel comments!