investigations, as he urges Republicans to turn out their supporters.
Steve Bannon has warned that losing control of the House of Representatives in the midterm elections could leave Donald Trump’s administration facing a wave of investigations and impeachment attempts.
Speaking to Ted Koppel for CBS News’ Sunday Morning, the former White House strategist portrayed the contest as a crucial test for Trump’s political movement and said Republicans needed to persuade less frequent voters to turn out.
“Oh, we can’t afford to lose. I don’t think there’s any doubt about that,” Bannon said.
The interview, recorded on 29 September at the studio of his War Room podcast, covered the Republican Party’s future, the war with Iran and Bannon’s continued support for a third Trump term.
Bannon predicted that a Democratic House majority would pursue impeachment proceedings against Robert F Kennedy Jr and Pete Hegseth, alongside repeated demands for testimony and documents.
“I think you’ll see subpoenas flying every day,” he said. “They will look to destroy President Trump, and we’ll be bogged down for two years.”
He argued that Republicans’ chances depended on mobilising their existing supporters, particularly people who do not regularly vote in midterm elections. In his view, the enthusiasm and organisation of the party’s base could prove decisive.
Bannon also acknowledged the organising strength of political opponents. He said democratic socialist activists had dedicated volunteers and effective local campaigns, even when their candidates took positions he regarded as outside the mainstream.
Despite tensions with Trump during the president’s first administration, Bannon remains an outspoken supporter. Once depicted on the cover of Time as “The Great Manipulator”, he now uses War Room to promote his nationalist and populist agenda.
He rejected the idea that the Republican Party could simply replace Trump with another figure, comparing the president’s historical significance to George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.
“I absolutely believe (and I think 99% of MAGA believes) that Trump was there for the salvation of the nation,” he said.
Bannon described himself as a right-winger rather than a conservative and said he remained committed to encouraging Trump to seek a third term. He nevertheless acknowledged that the president appeared uninterested, or that another term might not happen.
The Constitution’s 22nd Amendment prohibits anyone from being elected president more than twice. Bannon claimed discussions with constitutional lawyers had identified possible alternatives, but did not set out a detailed legal route in the remarks reported by CBS.
“I think you could drive a truck through that amendment,” he said, while acknowledging that any attempt would face court challenges.
Bannon also repeated the false claim that Trump won the 2020 presidential election. The certified result, recorded by the US National Archives, was a 306–232 Electoral College victory for Joe Biden.
Challenged about unsuccessful litigation over that election, Bannon argued that the cases had not received a hearing because the challengers lacked legal standing.
That does not describe all the cases. A review by the Campaign Legal Center found that some challenges were withdrawn or dismissed on procedural grounds, while others were considered on their merits and rejected.
Bannon served four months in prison for contempt of Congress after refusing to comply with a subpoena from the House committee investigating the 6 January attack on the US Capitol.
During the interview, he also rejected suggestions that Trump’s age had reduced his effectiveness and defended the president’s tendency to depart from prepared remarks.
On Iran, Bannon argued that military action and economic pressure were advancing the administration’s objectives. When Koppel challenged his description of Iran’s nuclear programme as completely destroyed, Bannon replied: “I believe it’s obliterated enough.”
He also pointed to pressure on Iran’s currency and oil trade, which he presented as part of a broader effort to weaken its economy.
The conversation extended to Bannon’s ties with far-right movements in Europe. He praised Germany’s Alternative for Germany party, known as the AfD, for its door-to-door campaigning and argued that American activists could learn from its methods.
Discussing his earlier career making political films for the Tea Party movement, Bannon also spoke about the influence of Leni Riefenstahl, who made propaganda films for Nazi Germany.
He described Riefenstahl as “amoral” but praised the impact of her filmmaking, saying he had sought to recreate that power in films intended to give ordinary people a political voice.
Bannon rejected the suggestion that the United States was moving towards fascism, describing the MAGA movement as inclusive and entrepreneurial and pointing to its participation in elections.
Returning to the midterms, he urged Republicans to commit fully to the campaign.
“I would push all our chips in the middle of the table and say, ‘Guys, there’s no retreat, and there’s no substitute for victory. Let’s fight like hell,’” he said.
