Bannon’s War Room: Episode 4803

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Maximalist Strategy, Seize The Institutions, Taking Down The Tech Oligarchs
Date: September 24, 2025
Host: Stephen K. Bannon
Key Guests: Julie Kelly, Chris Pavlovski, Representative Jim Jordan, others

Episode Overview

This episode of Bannon’s War Room centers on what the host and his guests frame as an urgent need for "maximalist" action: seizing American institutions from entrenched “deep state” and “tech oligarch” interests. Major discussions include the breaking news around a reported upcoming indictment of former FBI Director James Comey, deep frustration within the MAGA base over slow-moving institutional change, the political weaponization of law enforcement, renewed focus on Antifa as a domestic terror threat, and the role of Big Tech in election interference and censorship. The episode also features interviews with thought leaders on Conservative media platforms and strategies, highlighting the need for alternative tech and media ecosystems.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. James Comey’s Reported Imminent Indictment

[00:00 – 13:25]

• Breaking: Three sources say former FBI Director James Comey is expected to be indicted for perjury/lying to Congress, tied to September 2020 testimony about Crossfire Hurricane and the leaking of memos relating to Donald Trump.
• Julie Kelly provides detailed background: Comey took personal notes from meetings with Trump, some stored at home, and (allegedly) leaked via intermediary Daniel Richman to The NY Times, targeting the Michael Flynn investigation.
  • Kelly Quote [10:36]: “So, Steve, it appears that this will be either contempt of Congress or perjury lying to Congress related to his September 30, 2020 testimony… Jim Comey has always insisted that he did not disclose those records... Was that a lie?"
• Strong MAGA sentiment that these “minor” charges are just the beginning—Comey as symbol of "deep state" abuse and the broader anti-MAGA campaign at the FBI.
  • Bannon Quote [13:25]: “Comey totally went after the MAGA movement... lied and lied about Russiagate, and that’s where they’re getting him for. ... These guys are very slippery. They’re deep state. They’re liars. They all should go to prison.”

2. Political Violence and Lone Offenders

[01:10 – 03:30]

• The hosts discuss increasing political violence, lone offenders with complex or mixed motives, and shifting paradigms for categorizing such threats.
• Bannon’s take: Deep frustration at alleged lack of government response to violence attributed to leftist actors, and warning against growing radicalism.

3. Trump’s “Retribution” and Anti-Establishment Rhetoric

[06:11 – 07:12]

• Reflection on Trump’s campaign promises of “revenge and retribution,” and the enduring “martyr/victim” narrative, which resonates with supporters uncomfortable or distrustful of government institutions.
  • Quote [06:11]: “Well, he certainly promised revenge and retribution in this campaign… that the deep state is after me, they’re after you… and that is an incredibly effective, powerful message for Donald Trump’s base.”

4. Urgent Call for Maximalist Right-Wing Action

[23:20 – 27:42]

• Bannon argues for a “maximalist strategy”—urgent, total action to “seize the institutions” before anti-Trump actors “wait him out.”
• Criticism of “blue slip” judicial appointment custom as an obstacle to appointing pro-MAGA judges, especially in blue states.
• Focus on deep-rooted resistance within the DOJ, FBI, and even Trump’s administration, and frustration with Congressional Republicans' inaction.

  • Bannon Quote [23:20]: “The objective is to seize the institutions. They’re just looking at Trump as a passing phenomenon. ... We have to hit this system with a blowtorch or you’re going to find out... If we don’t take the administrative state and the deep state down now on this watch, it ain’t gonna happen.”

  • Julie Kelly [25:50]: “I called for the defunding and dismantling of that federal courthouse. ... We have not had one single impeachment inquiry, not one, into a federal judge in Washington... Republicans are not doing their side of the deal either.”

5. Antifa and Domestic Terrorism

[16:27 – 21:09]

• Renewed push for the classification of Antifa as a domestic terrorist group; praise for executive action treating Antifa as a threat, outlining the organization’s alleged structure and tactics.
  • Guest (Harmeet) [16:37]: “It is a paramilitary terror type organization that is loosely organized deliberately into little cells… It is way past time for the United States to take this very seriously and put resources behind it, learn about it.”
• Bannon expands: Argues institutions and NGOs finance these radical groups, emphasizing need for government “perp walks” and frustration with slow progress.
  • Bannon [18:16]: “Where are the perp walks, right? Where are the indictments? Where are the trials? … On Antifa, the same thing... [It is] pushing current legal boundaries about domestic terror versus international global terror.”

6. Tech Oligarchs, Censorship, and Election Interference

[30:05 – 41:18]

• Deep dive with Rumble CEO Chris Pavlovski and Rep. Jim Jordan on Big Tech’s collaboration with state actors to silence dissent and shape electoral outcomes, particularly in the 2020 election.
  • Jordan [30:05]: “...Google, it's a huge market cap company censoring, you know, half their customers… pressured by the Biden administration to censor speech.”
• Rumble’s growth as a free speech platform; Bannon and Pavlovski detail YouTube’s purge of conservative voices, specifically timed before November 2020 election, which forced migration to Rumble.
  • Pavlovski [32:43]: “In my opinion, Google interfered in the 2020 elections. They banned all... many conservative voices... prior to the election on November 3, 2020.”
  • Pavlovski [37:41]: “At Rumble, we don’t do that. We actually. We tell the government, you know, go pound sand.”
• Bannon slams the entire Silicon Valley as “progressive Marxist left...not libertarians,” warning that without alternative infrastructure, conservative voices will always be vulnerable.
  • Bannon [39:38]: “...they're all progressive. Marxist left, is all of them... You can take your number two pencil out... because it's as sure as the turning of the earth it's going to happen.”

7. Institutional Strategy & Mindset

[44:54 – 47:00]

• Bannon reiterates ongoing urgency, referencing recent left-wing violence, the unreplacability of lost figures like Charlie Kirk, and the need for unyielding determination among MAGA supporters.
  • “You’re not going to stop it until you stop it... We can't take time off. You have to do it, do it, do it, do it, do it. Because we’re burning daylight and they know that.”

Notable Quotes & Key Moments

• Julie Kelly on Comey’s legacy [10:36]:
  “He certainly shouldn't have kept [those notes]. They did contain sensitive investigative information. Oh. But they weren’t classified until later. So it was okay, basically, if he shared those with someone else, who then leaked it to the New York Times to try to destroy Mike Flynn.”

• Stephen K. Bannon on institutional urgency [23:20]:
  “If we don’t take the administrative state and the deep state down now on this watch, it ain’t gonna happen. And here’s what number one’s gonna happen. They're gonna put everybody in jail. ... If House Republicans would have started an inquiry... it would not be a little shot across the bow to these judges?”

• Chris Pavlovski (Rumble) on tech censorship [32:43]:
  “Google interfered in the 2020 elections. They banned many conservative voices on their platform prior to the election…”

• Pavlovski on Big Tech’s flexibility [38:09]:
  “...a wise person builds on a rock, a fool will build on sand. And what is happening right now is just a little temporary bandage to try to appease all the conservatives for the next couple years...”

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:00 – 10:16: Breaking news on Comey indictment, context, and deep state framing
• 10:36 – 13:25: Details on Comey’s memos, leaks, and legal jeopardy
• 16:27 – 21:09: Antifa as domestic terror threat, need for institutional response
• 23:20 – 27:42: Maximalist strategy—urgent institutional capture, frustration with GOP and bureaucracy
• 30:05 – 41:18: Big Tech censorship, election interference, Rumble as alternative platform
• 44:54 – 47:00: Bannon’s close—call for persistent activism, discussion of left-wing violence

Tone and Language Notes

• The episode is combative, urgent, and unapologetically partisan, marked by calls for “retribution,” institutional purges, and maximalist tactics.
• Language is sharp, direct, and often rhetorical, blending news and advocacy: “They all should go to prison...”, “Take the institutions with a blowtorch…”, “We tell governments, go pound sand.”

For Listeners New to the Episode

This episode encapsulates the War Room’s core themes in 2025: aggressive anti-institutional populism, a siege mentality regarding the administrative state and media/tech establishment, and a persistent call for pro-Trump partisans to take sweeping, permanent action before time runs out. If you want to understand the hard-right’s sense of urgency, their view of the 2020 and 2024 elections, and their strategy for 2025 and beyond, this episode is a pivotal snapshot.