Former Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannon said the ex-president is actually a “moderate” who will be succeeded by far more extreme MAGA disciples. (Watch the video below.)
Bannon delivered his ominous threat on the final episode of Showtime’s political series “The Circus.” He painted a scary portrait of another Trump administration should the Republican front-runner win in 2024.
Bannon called right-wing activist Mike Davis’ suggestions of enacting mass deportations, detaining kids and pardoning every Jan. 6 defendant “fantastic.”
The conversation with “The Circus” host John Heilemann and former Republican strategist Tim Miller then delved deep into Bannon’s blind denial of President Joe Biden’s victory in 2020. Bannon is convinced that Trump’s grievance-fueled and retribution-pledging campaign ― based on his lies that the vote was stolen from him ― is not only the right strategy but is the basic tenet of the MAGA movement.
The hosts outlined the absence of proof for those statements, but it fell on deaf ears.
All those who don’t believe, don’t belong, Bannon said.
“Everyone has to espouse the fake election fraud, or else they are excommunicated,” Miller commented.
“Not excommunicated. But you’re not part of this movement,” Bannon answered. “This is kind of the inner workings of this civil war between the Republican establishment and MAGA and in there you have a litmus test. And one of the litmus tests is ―”
“It’s Trump,” Heilemann said.
“Not just President Trump, but also particularly the stealing of the 2020 election,” Bannon replied. “That is a fundamental tenet of this movement. By the way, they’ve made it all about Trump, OK? This movement is ascendant and it’s gonna go on long after Donald Trump and it’s gonna get even more powerful and broader. Even if a Democrat was to win. There’s no compromise here.”
“What you’re saying is even if Trump lost to Biden, there’s no going back to the old Republican Party,” Heilemann said.
“No, farther right than Trump,” Bannon replied. “President Trump is a moderate in our movement. You’re going to pine in future years that you wished Donald Trump was around.”
While Bannon celebrated the possibility of a Trump second term despite 91 criminal counts spread over four indictments, at least one conservative foresees doom.
Former federal judge J. Michael Luttig said a Trump victory “would be catastrophic for America’s democracy.”