Bad Faith: A Must-Watch Documentary Ahead of November

A new documentary film from Stephen Ujlaki, Bad Faith, explores how the Council for National Policy, discussed in Anne Nelson’s book Shadow Network: Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical Right, took over the GOP and how they aim to destroy democracy. The film charts the rise of the CNP to their embrace of “wrecking ball” Donald Trump in the 2016 election and the fall of Roe v. Wade.

The success of the CNP has hinged on its mastery of local politics and data collection. The work of Anne Nelson was previously discussed in Charles Kriel’s documentary Data and Disinformation: Investigating Cambridge Analytica. Former Trump adviser Steve Bannon’s work with Cambridge Analytica is well documented.

Adept at astroturf campaigns, the CNP’s network has been active during the pandemic. They were tied to Moms for Liberty who attempted to politicize COVID-19 safety measures in schools and use that unrest to take over school boards. Notably, the CNP was involved with the embattled pro-Trump America’s Frontline Doctors, who pushed hydroxychloroquine as a COVID-19 cure. AFLDS’s leader Dr. Simone Gold, who has been active on the extreme evangelical circuit with Mike Flynn and the ReAwaken America tour, is now a CNP member.

Bad Faith, now available for streaming, is a must-watch ahead of the November election — especially given the frightening road map the mainstreamed far-Right has laid out for a second Trump presidency in their “Project 2025.”