BELLWETHER DIGEST – WEEK ENDING OCTOBER 30, 2026

By STAFF

This week’s report covers political, world, culture, market, and sci-tech news from October 23-30

This report contains the Global Outlook, Headlines Missed, and People Advance Reports.

For 2026 Election News, read our report on the midterm elections on pg. 2. You can read part two of the report on pg. xx.

TOP NEWS TAGS

1. 2026 Elections
   
2. AI Watch
3. Progressive State Press
4. China Watch
5. Brazil Watch
6. France Riots
7. Ukraine War
8. Israel Watch
9. Europe Riots
10. Iran War

GLOBAL OUTLOOK

1. APPEALS COURT PROTECTS 20,000 NON-CITIZEN CALIFORNIA BALLOTS – A Federal Appeals court ruled 2-1 to deny the Department of Justice’s request to remove 20,000 non-citizen ballots from California’s voter rolls. The court passed on a technicality, claiming it had no power to act until a lower court had ruled. They also claimed, “The United States’s claimed emergency, at least in part, is a self-constructed one.”
2. NETANYAHU CRIES FOUL AS ELECTION LEAVES NO FINAL WINNER – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to win a majority needed to form a government after the Israeli election, but so did his opponent. Netanyahu beat his opponent 21.4% to 16.2%. Netanyahu is claiming Islamist factions have infiltrated the election process, robbing his coalition of their “rightful” victory.

Golan posted on X, “We must no longer accept Netanyahu’s racist division between Jewish votes and Arab votes. We have a responsibility. And we have an opportunity to form a government of change in partnership with Israel’s Arab citizens.” Netanyahu responded, “We must not endanger Israel and establish a government that relies on anti-Zionist Arab parties.”

3. BOLSONARO LOSES IN “QUESTIONABLE” ELECTION – The Chinese won Brazil’s Presidential election when their candidate, Lula da Silva, won re-election for the third time. He defeated the American candidate, Senator Flavio Bolsanaro, the son of the former President, Jair Messias Bolsanaro. Lula lost in the first round of votes but came back in the run-off to defeat Bolsonaro by a 51-48-point margin.

The controversy with the election began when a Lula-supporting activist judge decided to extend the closing hour of the polls by 2 hours. It is believed this is where Lula “manufactured” the votes he needed to hold on to power. The win by Lula assures China will continue to have a strong presence in South America. It also means Brazilians will face draconian social media censorship laws.

4. AFTER IRAN REJECTS PEACE TALK OFFER, U.S. THREATENS STRIKES – Vice President JD Vance’s letter to the Iranians offering another round of peace talks was summarily rejected by the Iranian regime. As a result, the U.S. is threatening to resume air strikes against the Islamic Republic. Iran has countered that it would consider peace talks, but only if brokered by Pakistan.

The U.S. has reached out to its Gulf State allies and informed them there may soon be an “intense” war with Iran. The Strait of Hormuz is not completely opened, and Iran has been able to score hits on tankers still. President Trump once again claimed the war will be over soon, but hinted at a last intense stage.

5. CHINA LOSES TRILLIONS AS FAITH IN AI FALTERS – The Chinese STAR 50 Index has lost trillions of dollars in value in recent months thanks mostly to lost faith in AI. The total value of AI stocks accounts for 40% of the market. The AI machines being built aren’t making money off their domestic market, a problem the U.S. might be facing soon as well.
6. ARE THE SAUDIS ATTEMPTING TO BUY THE HOUTHIS OFF? – Saudi Arabia is allegedly working with Iran to broker a deal with the Houthis that would see the Houthis get $1 billion to quit the war. The allegations were released in the Israeli newspaper, Israel Hayom. The Houthis have expanded their attacks on Saudi Arabia, launching six strikes in recent days.

They are also threatening to declare war on Egypt should it aid the Saudis in the war. Their efforts to shut down the Red Sea have not quite materialized, but trade has been slowed, though not significantly.

7. COMEY GETS NEW CHARGE RELATED TO NY TIMES LEAK – James Comey will face more charges connected to an allegation he “knowingly and willingly” passed sensitive top secret national defense information to the New York Times, a flagship of the progressive state press.

The DOJ stated it filed a “waiverless criminal information to toll the statute of limitations as it relates to allegations concerning former FBI Director Comey. Filing a criminal information to toll the statute of limitations is a widely recognized practice in federal court and has been approved by multiple Circuit Courts of Appeals.”

8. SWALWELL INVESTIGATION LEADS TO NEW FBI RAID – A raid of a mansion in Southern California is connected to a federal investigation into the potential criminal activity of former congressman Eric Swallwell. He is suspected of having ties to the CCP. He is also suspected of committing sexual assault on women, with one accusing him of rape. It was his rape allegations that led to his resignation, not his ties to the CCP.
9. CONFUCIUS INSTITUTES DECLARED CCP FRONTS BY U.S. – The U.S. Department of War has declared China’s “cultural outreach” centers in progressive-run U.S. universities security threats.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth declared, “These Chinese government-backed propaganda cultural programs had infiltrated our nation’s universities in almost every state. Now, thankfully, Congress banned them a few years ago, these Confucius Institutes. But they came back disguised in new forms, just like DEI does. Just call it a different name. Well, the Department of War has taken action to stop this as well.”

HEADLINES MISSED

1. SERBIA FALLS TO A STUDENT REVOLUTION – Candidates in support of the “Student List” won the majority of seats in Serbia’s election, overthrowing the long-standing power of pro-Russian and Pro-Chinese Prime Minister Aleksander Vucic. The Student List won 52.7% of the vote and 140 of the 250 Parliament seats. The incumbent party, the Serbian Progressive Party, has been in power since 2012.
2. CHINA WINS IN U.S. COURT – A Federal judge has decided the Pentagon does not have a right to block firms from having defense contracts that lobby for Alibaba. The company rewarded in the ruling is a CCP-controlled and supporting enterprise. This ruling allows the CCP to continue to infiltrate American military procurement infrastructures. They can effectively even “lobby” congress to make it happen.
3. BREXIT TO BLAME FOR UK UNREST, BURNHAM CLAIMS – The UK’s radical progressive Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, continues to push an anti-Brexit narrative intended to set up a redo election. He hopes to bring the UK back into the EU, and he aims to use the riots and unrest in Britian to stigmatize Brexit. He is now directly accusing Brexit of being the underlying cause of the unrest in the country, not the unfettered immigration of foreigners that hate Britian, nor the criminalization of dissent against it.
4. U.S. JAPAN MILITARY DRILLS DISRUPTED BY CHINESE AND RUSSIAN SPY PLANES – While the U.S. and Japan were engaged in military drills in the Indo Pacific, China and Russia sent spy planes to disrupt the action. Japanese fighters were scrambled to escort the spy planes out of the region. The drills involved thousands of troops, hundreds of aircraft, and dozens of naval vessels.
5. 60 CHRISTIANS KILLED IN ETHIOPIA – Islamist assaults on Ethiopian Orthodox Churches have left 60 Christians dead. One attack claimed 14 lives, and another attack 4 days later left 46 dead. Local authorities blamed the Oromo Liberation Army for the slaughter. The terror group has failed to respond to the accusations.

PEOPLE ADVANCE

1. NO HEARINGS FOR ILLEGALS – The 5^th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 10-7 to continue to allow the Federal government to detain illegal aliens without a hearing. The ruling makes it easier to deport illegal aliens, whose deportations are often delayed by lengthy hearing-delay tactics from progressive activist “lawyers.”

The Supreme Court affirmed the lower

2. DEI DEFEATED DESPITE JUDGE’S AI “RULING” – The 5^th Circuit Court of Appeals struck down Judge Henry Wingate’s ruling that held an anti-DEI Mississippi Law was unconstitutional. The judge used AI to create plaintiffs not involved in the case.

In the ruling, the court declared, “Those included mention of plaintiffs and defendants not in the complaint, supposed ‘declarations’ from non-existent or never-present individuals, false quotations purporting to be taken from the text of H.B. 1193, and several erroneous claims that the law had already led to the demise of apparently fictitious programs.”

court. The ruling allows the Trump administration to deport illegal aliens without a hearing.

3. ALLEGED CLASSIFIED LEAKER ARRESTED – The FBI arrested a former CIA contractor, Ian Brinksman, 42, for allegedly leaking classified information through his Substack blog. An FBI affidavit alleges he published classified information, claiming the “public deserves to know about” it.
4. ONE MILLION BARRELS OF OIL FROM VENEZUELA – President Trump announced on Truth Social the arrival of 1 million barrels of oil coming from Venezuela at no expense to the taxpayer.

He wrote, “I am traveling to Corpus Christi, Texas to a PACKED Rally, where the United States of America will receive ONE MILLION BARRELS of VENEZUELAN OIL as a result of our Highly Successful Military Operation, followed by the Biggest Oil Deal in the History of the World. Thanks to our renewed relationship with Venezuela, which has turned out to be a truly excellent one, the Oil is being provided to the United States at NO cost to the American Taxpayer.”

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