Bannon’s War Room: Battleground EP 844
Date: September 5, 2025
Title: Updates From The UK And Spain On The Growing Anti-INVADER Protests Flaring Up
Host: Steve Bannon (with Harnwell as co-host)
Guests: Gonzalo Martin (Vice President, Democracia Nacional, Spain); Ed West (British journalist and commentator)
Episode Overview
This episode focuses on the recent surge of anti-immigration (referred to as “anti-invader”) protests in Spain and the UK, exploring the local sentiment, political dynamics fueling the unrest, and how authorities and mainstream media have responded—particularly the role of established “center-right” parties.
The first half examines events in Spain with guest Gonzalo Martin, addressing public reaction to crimes attributed to migrants and the perceived complicity of political elites in facilitating mass immigration.
The second half explores the UK’s flag protests and social divisions, with journalist Ed West analyzing the cultural and political meaning behind the increasing display (and removal) of St. George’s flags and the public’s response to government policies on immigration.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Spain: Local Backlash Against Migrant Policies
Guest: Gonzalo Martin (Democracia Nacional)
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Context: Migrant Crime & Protests
- Recent aggressive protests erupted in Madrid’s outskirts (Orthaleza), triggered by the alleged rape of a 14-year-old Spanish girl by a Moroccan migrant (claimed as 17 years old).
- Martin asserts this is part of a larger, continuous pattern of crimes involving migrants at youth reception centers.
- Locals feel their neighborhoods are unsafe due to assaults and theft by migrants, which Martin describes as a widespread problem “journalists don’t publicize.”
- “We are not sure if they are minors because when they enter Spain, they break the passport and we never know the real age of them.” — Gonzalo Martin [02:40]
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Media and Political Framing
- Martin criticizes left-wing media for labeling protesting residents as racist, ignoring their desire for peaceful communities.
- Authorities allegedly focus on incidents where locals retaliate, e.g. masked citizens attacking immigrants after the rape, while downplaying crimes by migrants.
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Role of the Popular Party (“Center-Right”) & Socialist Dynamics
- Both governing parties—center-right Popular Party (regional, Madrid) and national-level Socialists—use immigration as “a weapon” against each other, but neither addresses root concerns.
- Martin argues Popular Party is complicit in immigration growth, referencing data showing immigrant population exploding from 0.5 million in 1995 to over 5 million during their time in power.
- “When right wing people in Spain, they say, oh, the socialists are the one bringing the immigrants, it’s not true, it’s the Popular Party because...many entrepreneurs want to bring all this cheap labor hand to Spain.” — Gonzalo Martin [09:56]
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Suppression of Right-Wing Movements & Growing Disillusionment
- Attempts to organize protests by Democracia Nacional and VOX meet judicial and administrative suppression, allegedly to suppress “anti-immigrant sentiment.”
- Martin details the failure of the Popular Party to address immigration (instead focusing on funding center operations), causing voters to seek alternatives like VOX or his party.
- “I can say that more or less 20 percent—15 to 20 percent—of Spanish people are already tired of the Popular Party. They don’t believe in them anymore and they will vote for Vox, for example.” — Gonzalo Martin [15:09]
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Demographics & Naturalization Laws
- Spanish population growth in the last 30 years is, according to Martin, entirely due to immigration; the government’s policy grants citizenship quickly (2–3 years) to people from former colonies, greatly complicating statistics.
- “We are 48 million but, really, 14 are already immigrants... because we have also...half a million of illegal immigrants that are not part of the statistics.” — Gonzalo Martin [17:03]
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Blue Collar Reactions & Generational Splits
- Working-class Spaniards feel abandoned by the left, which is seen as prioritizing immigrants over local needs. Increasingly, support for anti-immigration parties comes from these demographics.
- “People that are the one who are suffering the immigration, they are the ones who face all these problems...working class people...see they are totally abandoned by the left.” — Gonzalo Martin [22:53]
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Suppression Backfires with Youth
- Judicial suppression of protests makes older citizens more cautious; younger people, however, openly call for removal of migrants, reflecting declining fear of being labeled “racist.”
- “The young people...they say we don’t want them in Spain, we want them to send them back to the country. People are so tired of this situation...” — Gonzalo Martin [25:15]
2. UK: Flag Protests and Cultural Tensions
Guest: Ed West (British journalist, author)
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Palestinian vs. English Flags: Symbolism & Social Pressure
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West observes widespread display of Palestinian flags in liberal, upper-middle class London neighborhoods—signaling “solidarity” among some, but creating a “territorial feel” in predominantly Muslim areas.
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Some non-Muslim shopkeepers reportedly feel pressured to display the flag to avoid intimidation.
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Councils in places like Tower Hamlets and Birmingham resist removing Palestinian flags, citing community tensions and security issues.
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“Some shopkeepers have even said that they feel they have to put up the Palestinian flag in their shops because otherwise they might be intimidated.” — Ed West [33:36]
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Operation Raise the Colors: Spontaneous English Flag Movement
- Grassroots movement began outside Birmingham, with citizens displaying English flags (St. George’s Cross) on lampposts and painting them in public spaces as a form of protest—especially in communities facing sudden migrant hotel placements.
- Councils moved quickly to remove or paint over the flags, now citing “health and safety,” in contrast to their approach to Palestinian flags.
- “If you want to get rid of a pothole, you can just paint a flag on it and then they’ll come and fix it.” — Ed West [38:48]
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Flag as Social Marker: The Problem of ‘Respectability’
- Explains how the English flag (distinct from the British ‘Union Jack’) is associated in elite circles with the working class or far right, stemming from its politicization in the 1970s-80s by groups like the National Front.
- Elites remain “uncomfortable” with national symbols outside official contexts (like football tournaments), and especially with their use in connection to immigration protests.
- “There’s this kind of fear of...these working class thugs, you know, running around the flag. And they’re the kind of people we’re scared of, naturally.” — Ed West [41:13]
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Social Media’s Transformative Role
- West and Bannon argue that social platforms have allowed regular people to see they’re not alone in their opposition, encouraging wider protest participation and puncturing the isolating “respectability cascade.”
- “For the first time people have had the courage to come back and do these protests, which beforehand they wouldn’t have done, because they don’t want to be associated with the thugs that you were mentioning before.” — Steve Bannon [46:13]
- West and Bannon argue that social platforms have allowed regular people to see they’re not alone in their opposition, encouraging wider protest participation and puncturing the isolating “respectability cascade.”
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Asymmetric Multiculturalism
- West introduces “asymmetric multiculturalism” (from Eric Kaufmann), where state and society enforce stricter scrutiny, suppression, or even pathologizing of majority nationalism, while minority identity is celebrated or protected.
- “Modern diverse states basically rest on rules where the majority and minority groups basically are treated in completely different ways...The British state is terrified of majority nationalism.” — Ed West [48:12]
- West introduces “asymmetric multiculturalism” (from Eric Kaufmann), where state and society enforce stricter scrutiny, suppression, or even pathologizing of majority nationalism, while minority identity is celebrated or protected.
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Future of Protests & Public Mood
- West suggests anger is mounting, cracks are appearing in established taboos, and winter might “cool” things off but underlying causes—the disconnection between public expression and private belief—remain, and protests will return.
- “Social system can’t indefinitely survive if there is that great gap between what people say in public and what they actually believe and what they do.” — Ed West [45:38]
- “In the long term, the discontent...and the role of social media...I think it’s having quite a big effect in Europe right now, which no one probably foresaw...the kind of basic problems are there and ultimately getting worse.” — Ed West [50:01]
- West suggests anger is mounting, cracks are appearing in established taboos, and winter might “cool” things off but underlying causes—the disconnection between public expression and private belief—remain, and protests will return.
Notable Quotes & Timestamps
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On Migrant Crime and Neighborhood Tension (Spain)
- “Nowadays it’s impossible [to walk safely] due to all these immigrants...they are harassing and attacking local people, not only young girls—also old people stealing from them, the necklace, bracelets, watches, everything.”
— Gonzalo Martin [04:18]
- “Nowadays it’s impossible [to walk safely] due to all these immigrants...they are harassing and attacking local people, not only young girls—also old people stealing from them, the necklace, bracelets, watches, everything.”
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On Political Complicity
- “It’s the Popular Party, as you said, they are part of the elite. And of course there are many entrepreneurs that wants to bring all this cheap labor hand to Spain.”
— Gonzalo Martin [09:56]
- “It’s the Popular Party, as you said, they are part of the elite. And of course there are many entrepreneurs that wants to bring all this cheap labor hand to Spain.”
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On Public Awakening
- “We are not here for the salary. We are totally people that we are fighting for our country and we want the best. So in this case, Vox is the one who is taking advantage of all these years of work of many patriots...”
— Gonzalo Martin [15:10]
- “We are not here for the salary. We are totally people that we are fighting for our country and we want the best. So in this case, Vox is the one who is taking advantage of all these years of work of many patriots...”
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On State Response to Protests
- “People that are younger, they don’t care anymore...especially young people, they don’t care anymore about being accused of being racist, fascist, or whatever they say. These people, they will never integrate. We don’t want that they come to Spain, we don’t want that they stay here.”
— Gonzalo Martin [25:15]
- “People that are younger, they don’t care anymore...especially young people, they don’t care anymore about being accused of being racist, fascist, or whatever they say. These people, they will never integrate. We don’t want that they come to Spain, we don’t want that they stay here.”
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On Flag Politics in the UK
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“Shopkeepers have even said that they feel they have to put up the Palestinian flag in their shops because otherwise they might be intimidated.”
— Ed West [33:36] -
“The English flag is a bit more...proletarian is the way to describe it. People fly the English flag during football tournaments, for instance...but once you see people protesting about immigration also carrying the English flag, then they start to get very uncomfortable.”
— Ed West [41:02]
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On Asymmetric Multiculturalism
- “Majority and minority groups basically are treated in completely different ways...Minority identity has to be celebrated, majority nationalism has to be suppressed.”
— Ed West [48:12]
- “Majority and minority groups basically are treated in completely different ways...Minority identity has to be celebrated, majority nationalism has to be suppressed.”
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On Social Media and Shifting Taboos
- “Social media breaks that, it smashes it because you can now see someone saying something with a tweet or something on X and that will get 10 million, 15 million, 20 million views. And people know...oh, wow. I didn’t realize I was the only person who thought that—there were others.”
— Steve Bannon [46:13]
- “Social media breaks that, it smashes it because you can now see someone saying something with a tweet or something on X and that will get 10 million, 15 million, 20 million views. And people know...oh, wow. I didn’t realize I was the only person who thought that—there were others.”
Segment Timestamps
- 00:03–02:40: Steve Bannon & Harnwell open + context for Spanish protests
- 02:40–19:50: Discussion with Gonzalo Martin: migrant crime, party politics, demographics
- 19:50–24:48: Political and working class dynamics, party competition, generational shifts
- 24:48–26:29: Effects of protest suppression on public attitudes, especially the young
- 27:00–32:54: Bannon introduces Ed West; context on UK flag politics and local dynamics
- 32:54–38:32: Operation Raise the Colors: grassroots flags, council responses, protest roots
- 38:32–44:34: The English flag as a class and political marker; respectability and protest stigma
- 44:34–49:43: Role of social media; asymmetric multiculturalism; public/private opinion gap
- 49:43–51:15: Will protests fade or grow? Social media’s role in long-term change
Memorable Moments
- Ed West’s “pothole” quip, poking fun at council priorities:
“If you want to get rid of a pothole, you can just paint a flag on it and then they’ll come and fix it.” [38:48]
- The invocation of “asymmetric multiculturalism” crystallizing audience frustrations about perceived double standards [48:12-49:43]
Resources & Guest Socials
- Gonzalo Martin / Democracia Nacional
- Telegram and Twitter: @democracianacional
- Website: democracianacional.es
- Radio program: Aquila Bode Europa
- Ed West
- Substack: edwest.co.uk
- Twitter: @edwest
Summary
Through first-hand interviews and pointed analysis, this episode paints a portrait of intensifying social fracture in Spain and the UK over mass migration, the failings of legacy political parties, and the grassroots cultural responses—from street protests to national flag movements. Across both contexts, Bannon and guests argue, mainstream parties of both right and left have lost legitimacy, while younger and working-class citizens are increasingly vociferous in their opposition, unafraid of old taboos. Social media acts as a force multiplier, breaking the elite’s monopoly on public narrative. As social, ethnic, and identity-based lines harden, the confrontation between “official” multiculturalism and indigenous national sentiment promises to intensify in the coming years.