Bannon Assures Podcast Listeners His Show Will Continue During Prison Stint

He’s also said he’ll use his time on the inside to help get Donald Trump reelected.
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Bannon photographed during an interview with The New York Times on November 8, 2017.By Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times.

Last month, longtime Trump adviser Stephen Bannon claimed in an emergency court filing that he should not have to report to prison while appealing his contempt of Congress conviction, in part because it would deprive his podcast listeners of crucial political insights in the months leading up to the election. Unfortunately for Bannon, that argument did not sway the appeals court, and following a last-ditch petition to the Supreme Court that was rejected on Friday, he begins a four-month prison sentence today.

But not before one final edition of his podcast, the War Room; speaking to The New York Times over the weekend, Bannon said he would host two hours of the show outside the Danbury, Connecticut, prison where he will be incarcerated for the next 16 weeks. “We’ll be as close to the prison as we can possibly get,” Bannon told the outlet, saying that after he hangs up his headphones, “I’ll walk across the street and surrender.” Meanwhile, the show will continue in his absence. Per the Times:

He has prepared for this moment for months, Mr. Bannon said, enlisting a team of nearly 20 guest hosts to continue pumping out the show, which streams its distinctive stew of unvaryingly pro-Trump political patter for four hours a day, Monday through Friday, plus two additional hours on Saturdays.

That group includes Andrew Giuliani, the son of Mr. Trump’s former lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani; Mr. Bannon’s daughter, Maureen; Noor bin Laden, the niece of Osama bin Laden, who is known for her belief in conspiracy theories; and Jeffrey Clark, who served in the Justice Department under Mr. Trump and faces criminal charges in Georgia in connection with efforts to overturn Mr. Trump’s 2020 election loss there. They’ll be responsible for managing the stream of Republican politicians, consultants, media figures, pollsters, policy experts, donors, intellectuals, and economists who use War Room as a bullhorn aimed directly at what is arguably Mr. Trump’s most loyal and engaged base of support.

Bannon told the Times that former Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro will also appear on the show, after his prison sentence ends July 17. Navarro also chose to ignore a congressional subpoena from the January 6 committee, and was convicted last year.

Speaking of convicted criminals, Bannon said he will remain focused on getting Donald Trump reelected during his time on the inside, and that if the ex-president doesn’t win in November, it will mark “the death of the constitutional American republic we know.”