WarRoom Battleground EP 859:

"Taxpayer Money Spent On Trans Research At Universities"

Date: September 29, 2025
Host: Stephen K. Bannon (and guests Natalie Winters, Sophia Georges, legal expert Peter Tinkin, analyst Ube Shandarhar)
Podcast: Bannon's War Room

Episode Overview

This episode delivers a multi-segment deep dive on three main fronts:

1. The evolving U.S. role in Middle East peace talks, the Trump-Netanyahu dynamic, and a newly brokered deal with Arab nations.
2. Natalie Winters’ investigative reporting on U.S. taxpayer-funded trans and LGBTQ+ activism in academic research, its linkage with left-wing activism, and political violence.
3. Current U.S. political battlegrounds, with a focus on New Jersey’s gubernatorial race, shifting voter trends, and the Tina Peters case highlighting concerns around judicial fairness and political prisoners.

Bannon and his guests use urgent, combative language, warning of "civil war"-level tensions and frequently asserting their America First, anti-leftist perspective.

1. U.S.-Israel Relations and the Middle East Peace Deal

[00:51–09:28] & [45:13–51:12]

Key Points:

• Netanyahu's Unusual Visit:
  Bannon opens describing an atypical, unceremonious White House visit by Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu—lacking customary honors, which Bannon interprets as a signal of “seriousness” in negotiations ([00:51]).

• Transactional Diplomacy:
  Trump is portrayed as imposing a peace solution, orchestrating Arab financial commitments, and giving Israel ("a protectorate") little room for negotiation ([03:40–06:20]). Netanyahu is depicted as self-serving and distrustful, with Bannon noting, “his cunning nature, bald faced lies... the sneakiness of him” ([06:40]).

• Arab World Alignment:
  Analyst Ube Shandarhar highlights a “textbook statesmanship” move: an “unprecedented joint press release from Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, and Egypt” supporting Trump’s peace efforts ([45:32–45:55]), with the crux of the deal mandating Israeli withdrawal and non-annexation clauses, and emphasizing Arab pressure on Hamas.

• Abraham Accords Expansion:
  Trump seeks to bring even Iran (“the Persians”) into the fold to stabilize the region, potentially cooling regime-change ambitions ([50:00–50:45]).

Notable Quotes & Moments:

• Bannon:
  “President Trump just kind of pops out on the West Wing… no color guard… It was a signal that this was going to be a serious meeting and Netanyahu had to pay attention” ([01:35]).
• Bannon:
  “This is how you treat a protectorate, here's what we're going to do, here's why we're going to do it. Here's what you need to do…” ([06:30]).
• Ube Shandarhar:
  “We haven't seen anything like that before… a historic day for peace, not just to end the war in Gaza but to set the foundation for wider peace in the Middle East” ([45:13–46:00]).
• Bannon:
  “[Trump] says this is the deal. You're taking it. Now Hamas has got to meet the conditions…” ([07:20]).
• Shandarhar (re: Trump):
  “He praised the leadership of Indonesia, King of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates… This is something we haven't seen a president do before: bring the Arab and Muslim world together…” ([47:08]).

2. University Research, Trans/LGBTQ+ Activism & Political Violence

[09:28–19:18] & [16:02–19:11]

Key Points:

• Natalie Winters’ Report:
  Winters presents findings from her investigation into Harvard’s “Non Violent Action Center”, led by Erica Chenoweth, who is federally funded (USAID, State Dept.) to study “youth and LGBTQ participation in nonviolent action” ([10:39–11:18]).

• Allegations of Violence Normalization:
  Winters alleges that despite the “nonviolent” label, these efforts essentially “toy with the blurred line” between activism and inciting violence, claiming Chenoweth gives “moral justification for acts like we saw against Charlie Kirk” ([13:29–14:18]).

• Projection and 'Stochastic Terrorism':
  Winters argues that the left’s accusations of “stochastic terrorism” are themselves projection, and that the “Democratic Party’s apparatus” enables such actions ([12:39–13:29]).

• Academic Work Scrutinized:
  She references Chenoweth’s publications:

  • “The Role of Violence in Nonviolent Resistance”
  • “Resilient Republics: Why Terrorism Does Not Destroy Democracy”
  • “Youth and LGBTQ Activism as a Strategic Roadmap”
    ... as evidence of a strategy to shift political demonstrations into tools for regime change ([13:50–14:39]).

Notable Quotes & Moments:

• Winters:
  “If you have to specify that your political activism is nonviolent, that's probably a bad sign” ([12:32]).

• Winters:
  “This is just toying with playing the blurred line game, moving the goalpost of what pro-democracy political demonstration looks like. This is full blown regime change…” ([14:00]).

• Winters:
  “Unity is a dog whistle for complete and utter submission… You can never compromise with the left.” ([15:20–15:55]).

• Bannon, on violence and the 'color revolution':
  “In the color revolution that's being foisted upon us... Where in the chart... are we right now, given that a certain aspect ... is the violence?” ([16:02]).

• Winters, on youth activism:
  “This is the equivalent of the little Red Guard. Maybe it’s the little trans guard. These are people who’ve been indoctrinated their entire lives… they're really desperate and that's why they're becoming so violent. And I truly only think it's going to get worse unless the Trump administration really cracks down.” ([17:15–19:11]).

3. U.S. Battlegrounds: New Jersey, California, and Political Shifts

[19:39–25:52]

Key Points:

• New Jersey’s Political Climate:
  Bannon and Sophia Georges discuss surprising Republican momentum. Georges describes Democrats defecting over unaffordable taxes and utilities, with notable cross-party voter dissatisfaction ([21:52–24:59]).

• Candidate Forum Recap:
  In a gubernatorial forum, Republican Jack Chiarelli gains a raucous standing ovation among realtors, contrasted with Democrat Mikey Sherrill’s tepid reception ([22:15–23:36]).

Notable Quotes & Moments:

• Georges:
  “‘I’m a Democrat, always voted Democrat, but this year I am not voting Democrat.’ ... They have really taken it too far...” ([24:01]).
• Bannon:
  “We got a dog fight in New Jersey. I think we're about to have one in California. But this New Jersey race could be a real bellwether for ‘26.” ([24:59]).

4. The Tina Peters Case & Political Prisoner Allegations

[31:51–43:59]

Key Points:

• The Situation:
  As the White House honors Gold Star mothers, Bannon focuses on Tina Peters—whom he calls a “political prisoner,” held in medium security in Colorado under what he describes as dangerous, punitive conditions ([32:42–38:28]).

• Legal Battles:
  Peters’ attorney, Peter Tinkin, details multi-pronged legal efforts (appeals, federal habeas, DOJ contact), alleging judicial bias, bureaucratic delays, and political motives behind her continued imprisonment ([32:42–40:49]).

• Blame Assignment:
  Bannon asserts Colorado Governor Jared Polis is holding Peters as a “hostage” for political reasons; Tinkin disputes direct gubernatorial involvement, pointing instead to obstruction by Todd Blanche at the DOJ ([36:00–39:34]).

• Conditions in Prison:
  Both agree that Peters is at serious risk:

  • “Every night... she’s surprised... she managed to survive another day.” (Tinkin, [41:39])
  • Bannon: “She’s a political prisoner and they’re trying to break her. Now, you can't break Tina Peters because she’s unbreakable. She’s one of the most amazing women I’ve ever met.” ([43:35–43:59])

5. Memorable Quotes (with Timestamps & Attribution)

| Time | Speaker | Quote/Paraphrase | |----------|-------------|----------------------| | 01:35 | Bannon | “President Trump just kind of pops out on the West Wing… no color guard… It was a signal that this was going to be a serious meeting and Netanyahu had to pay attention.” | | 06:40 | Bannon | “Given the track record of Netanyahu, the duplicitous nature of him, the sneakiness of him, his cunning nature and his bald faced lies…” | | 10:39 | Winters | “…the Harvard Non Violent Action Center… funded by USAID and the State Department… most recent study was focused on… how trans youth can get involved in making political realities more favorable to them.” | | 12:32 | Winters | “If you have to specify that your political activism is nonviolent, that's probably a bad sign...” | | 14:00 | Winters | “This is just toying with playing the blurred line game… This is full blown regime change and providing the ideological, cultural, and moral justification for the acts like we saw against Charlie Kirk.” | | 15:20 | Winters | “Unity is a dog whistle for complete and utter submission… You can never compromise with these people. You can never compromise with the left.” | | 17:15 | Winters | “This is the equivalent of the little Red Guard, maybe it’s the little trans guard. These are people who’ve been indoctrinated their entire lives…” | | 24:01 | Georges | “‘I’m a Democrat… but this year I am not voting Democrat.’ They have really taken it this year too far and people are starting to pay attention.” | | 41:39 | Tinkin | “Every night... she’s surprised... she managed to survive another day. That’s what she’s in… she’s a political prisoner in this war.” | | 45:13 | Shandarhar | “We haven't seen anything like that before… a historic day for peace, not just to end the war in Gaza but to set the foundation for wider peace in the Middle East...” | | 50:00 | Bannon | “…when President Trump talked about the Abraham Accords, he's the one that mentioned including the Persians. Get the Persians to sign up… he wants to include Iran to actually sign it.” |

6. Episode Structure & Key Segments

| Segment | Topic | Key Voices/Highlights | |------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------| | 00:13–09:28 | Trump-Netanyahu, Middle East strategy | Bannon monologue | | 09:28–19:18 | Trans/LGBTQ+ research, left activism, “color revolution” | Natalie Winters, Bannon | | 19:39–25:52 | NJ/CA elections, voter trends | Sophia Georges, Bannon | | 31:51–43:59 | Tina Peters' case, political prisoners | Peter Tinkin (lawyer), Bannon | | 45:13–51:12 | White House peace announcement, Arab/Israeli response | Ube Shandarhar, Bannon |

7. Tone and Style

• Combative, urgent, and conspiratorial.
• Heavy use of metaphors (“color revolution,” “protectorate,” “Red Guard/little trans guard”), consistent allusions to civil war and regime change.
• Sharp criticism of Democratic and left-wing activists, politicians, and academia.
• Portrayal of Trump as a forceful, decisive, and “tired” leader “with the weight of the world on his shoulders.”

8. Takeaways for New Listeners

• On U.S. Foreign Policy: Trump is using U.S. leverage (esp. finances) to push for a comprehensive Middle East peace, bypassing traditional diplomatic niceties and making Israel accept strict conditions, with the Arab world unified behind his plan.
• On Domestic Politics: Investigative journalism (by Natalie Winters) is casting academic work on LGBTQ+ activism and protest in an alarming light, tying it to political violence and a broader “color revolution” narrative.
• On Political Trends: Widespread voter dissatisfaction is opening new possibilities for GOP candidates even in deep blue states, driven by basic economic issues.
• On Justice and Political Prisoners: The Tina Peters saga is used as an example of the dangers of political bias in the criminal justice system, amplifying fears that dissenters face real persecution.

Further Resources/Links Mentioned (from Guests)

• Sophia Georges' campaign: FTGOP.org ; realsiffyrealestate.com
• Tina Peters defense: Tina Peters Fund, AmericanRightsAlliance.com
• Ube Shandarhar: “@os26” on X/Twitter