Arizona Justice on the Big Screen: State 48 News Goes to Mar-A-Lago for the World Premiere of 'The Eastman Dilemma'
Arizona’s Role in the Fight Over Weaponized Justice: State 48 News gets the first look at this gripping documentary.
Despite national media expressing disappointment - even outrage - over not being invited to Mar-a-Lago this past weekend, Arizona was well-represented by journalists covering the world premiere of The Eastman Dilemma, including State 48 News’ Christy Kelly and Jennifer Barber.
This powerful documentary reveals the profound impact of weaponized lawfare on Dr. John Eastman—a renowned constitutional scholar now vilified as one of 11 accused “plotters” in Arizona’s 2020 election saga.
Invited by The Arizona Sun Times’ Rachel Alexander, we flew in to capture this high-stakes event and powerhouse panel featuring a lineup of legal and political warriors including Dr. Eastman, Rudy Giuliani, General Mike Flynn, Jeff Clark, Peter Navarro, and Alan Dershowitz. Peter Navarro informed attendees that the featured legal panel represents $20 million in legal fees.
An iconic moment captured by State 48 News at Mar-a-Lago: President-elect Donald Trump, Senator Marco Rubio, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni stand together, attentively listening during a panel discussion ahead of the premiere of “The Eastman Dilemma” documentary.
ABOUT THE FILM
The documentary The Eastman Dilemma: Lawfare or Justice debuted on the charged anniversary of January 6th—marking four years since the infamous event at the United States Capitol. The film delivers a piercing critique of an increasingly politicized legal system, where conservative attorneys and clients face disproportionate scrutiny and punishment. By exposing the chilling effect of this two-tiered justice system on free speech and legal advocacy, filmmakers challenge viewers to confront the erosion of fairness and demand equal treatment under the law.
Eastman colleague and attorney Paul Ingrassia writes:
John Eastman, the Claremont Institute scholar and conservative firebrand who stood by President Trump’s side all throughout some of the darkest days in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election when the republic was on the line, will have his story told for the first time on the silver screen come the new year.
The film marks the culmination of a years-long ordeal that has seen Eastman, once universally revered as a foremost authority in constitutional construction and history, targeted by one of the most ruthless and sustained lawfare campaigns against any attorney in American history.
This explosive film from Madison Media Fund is said to rip the mask off Marxist prosecutors like Fani Willis, Jack Smith, and Alvin Bragg, exposing how they’ve twisted the rule of law into a ruthless political weapon, shaking the very foundation of our Constitutional system. With hard-hitting revelations and electrifying debate, the film confronts the stark reality of America’s identity crisis, the fragility of justice, and the founders’ vision of a nation ruled by principles—not the iron fists of power-drunk tyrants.
THE ARIZONA CONNECTION
Arizona. Arizona. Arizona. The film opens with audio of the arguably premature call of Arizona during the 2020 U.S. presidential election by Bret Baier of Fox News — a pivotal and controversial moment.
State 48 News’ Senior Investigative Journalist Jennifer Barber asked Dr. John Eastman if - given all he knows now and the consequences of doing so - he’d do it all over again. Eastman authored a memo outlining a strategy for then-Vice President Mike Pence to reject electoral votes from certain battleground states during the certification of the Electoral College results on January 6, 2021. The memo suggested Pence could either reject the electors outright or delay the certification to allow state legislatures more time to investigate alleged irregularities.
Dr. Eastman told Barber, emphatically, ‘yes’ because it was the right thing to do. The American thing to do.
General Michael Flynn had the same passion and same answer when questioned by Barber. General Michael Flynn is a retired United States Army lieutenant general who was the 24th U.S. national security advisor for the first 22 days of the first Trump administration. He called on President Trump to suspend the Constitution, declare martial law, and have the military oversee a new election, warning of an imminent "shooting civil war" if such actions were not taken.
Both General Flynn and Dr. Eastman have faced great private, personal, and financial consequences in the past four years. And both face mounting legal fees and challenges as described in an exclusive report by Rachel Alexander of the Arizona Sun Times.
In April 2024, an Arizona grand jury indicted 18 individuals, including prominent figures such as Dr. John Eastman, Rudy Giuliani and Mark Meadows, on charges of conspiracy, fraud, and forgery related to a scheme involving the submission of false Electoral College certificates asserting that Donald Trump won Arizona in the 2020 presidential election. This indictment followed the release of a detailed report to Attorney General Kris Mayes from a private group, outlining potential legal strategies for prosecuting those involved in the "fake electors" scheme.
In November, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes reaffirmed her commitment to pursuing the “fake electors” case, stating that those who attempted to undermine democracy in 2020 must be held accountable, as decided by a state grand jury.
Also accused are senior officials of the Arizona Republican party such as the former chair Kelli Ward and state senators Anthony Kern and Jake Hoffman. Lorraine Pellegrino, secretary of the electors group and a former president of the Ahwatukee Republican Women, pleaded guilty earlier this year to a single count of filing a false instrument and was sentenced to unsupervised probation. Meanwhile, Jenna Ellis, a former attorney for Trump’s 2020 campaign, entered a cooperation agreement with the Arizona Attorney General’s Office, agreeing to testify in court in exchange for the eventual dismissal of charges against her.
The trial for the accused is scheduled to commence in January 2026.
THE MORE YOU KNOW
Dr. John Eastman highlighted his central role across multiple high-profile legal cases as "Unindicted Co-Conspirator Number 2" in Washington, D.C., "Indicted Co-Conspirator Number 3" in Georgia, and "Indicted Co-Conspirator Number 13" in Arizona. “I dropped down in my ranking there,” says Eastman.
You may view John Eastman's address at the National Conservatism Conference in Washington, DC from July 8, 2024 here…
The Georgia Court of Appeals disqualified Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis from prosecuting the 2020 election subversion case against President-elect Donald Trump and others, citing a "significant appearance of impropriety" due to her past romantic relationship with Special Assistant District Attorney Nathan Wade, who was involved in the case.
John Eastman, alongside Donald Trump, Rudy Giuliani, Mark Meadows, and Kenneth Chesebro, became a central target in August 2023 when Fani Willis and her office unleashed sweeping charges alleging a conspiracy to overturn Georgia's 2020 election results.
While the indictment remains intact and a new prosecutor will be appointed, Willis faces increasing scrutiny, including a motion to block defendants’ appeals and an order to testify before a special commission investigating allegations of misconduct, further intensifying the political and legal challenges surrounding her pursuit of Trump.
The creator of the term “lawfare” - Alan Dershowitz - explains the Stalinism tactic, “Show me the man, I’ll find you the crime.” This is the panel discussion prior to the viewing of “The Eastman Dilemma” at Mar-a-Lago.
Watch the film, please visit eastmandilemma.com/maralago.
State 48 News attended the debut premiere two days before the public could stream the film for personal viewing on January 6, 2025.
KELLY’S TWO CENTS
Arizona has been a focal point for election security for years and will likely continue to be so in the foreseeable future. We are fortunate to have one of the most prolific and respected journalists covering this area: Rachel Alexander, who is an Arizonan and a friend of Dr. John Eastman.
Rachel said, “I first met John in 2014 when I applied for a job with his Claremont Institute. I was such a fan of his work as a conservative constitutional legal scholar. Constitutional law has always been my favorite area of law.”
She continued, “I didn’t get the job, probably because it wasn’t a good fit for me. I recall it involved attending events with his fundraiser and discussing history, while my background is more focused on law and journalism.”
Rachel added, “However, we hit it off, and he mentioned finding me a job with Breitbart instead. I eventually got hired by The Stream.”
I asked Rachel why it was important to cover the Eastman trial. She has written over 30 articles about the trial and continues to write more as Eastman appeals and faces other legal challenges.
Rachel said, “I thought it was important to cover his trial because lawfare against conservatives has become so prevalent. It’s escalated from lawsuits to prosecutions and has now extended to targeting conservative attorneys in an attempt to cancel them.”
She continued, “I was one of the early targets of lawfare against conservative attorneys. The State Bar of Arizona suspended my law license in 2012 for six months because I was working for Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas, assisting him in going after corrupt Maricopa County Supervisors and complicit judges.”
Rachel explained, “Since the free speech of attorneys is severely restricted by state bars—such as not allowing them to criticize judges—hardly anyone with knowledge of the legal system is speaking up against this targeting of attorneys.”
She added, “Since I am no longer a licensed attorney—the corrupt bar won’t allow me back in until I pay over $100,000, the cost of the trial against me and my two superiors—I’m a rare lawyer who can speak out freely, unlike licensed attorneys.”
“What really struck me about going after Eastman,” Rachel said, “is that the left is no longer targeting low-hanging fruit—little-known conservatives who have neither money nor connections. They’ve already mastered taking them out.
Now they’re going for the top conservatives like Trump and Eastman. Canceling the top constitutional legal scholar on the right as if he’s corrupt and sloppy. His resume is over 100 pages long—it’s so insane.”
Rachel concluded, “He’s one of the most enjoyable people you will ever meet—so intelligent, charismatic, and fun to be around. He’s the type of person you want as a friend, someone you’d love to hang out with. I’ve met his wife and daughter too, and they are also salt of the earth. How the left could target such a wonderful person is unconscionable.”
BARBER’S TWO CENTS
State 48 News’s Jennifer Barber will have much more of her conversation with General Michael Flynn in the days to come.
We discussed the rise of independent journalism, Gen. Flynn’s stance on children and social media, and the role of lawfare preventing more Americans from running for office.
Special thanks to Rachel Alexander for the invite to view the world premier of this film. I highly recommend all Americans view it and make their own opinion on lawfare vs. justice in America.
