THE WAR ROOM WITH STEPHEN K. BANNON (Dec 8, 2025 – Ep#4982)

Podcast: Real America’s Voice | iHeartPodcasts
Date: December 8, 2025
Host: Stephen K. Bannon
Main Guests: John Fredericks, Natalie Winters, Senator Mike Lee, Mike Lindell

Episode Overview

This episode dives into three headline topics at the core of current right-wing American discourse:

• The make-or-break legislative wars over redistricting in Indiana and their impact on the 2026 midterms;
• The ongoing struggle over the U.S.-China technology race, specifically regarding advanced chip sales and AI, and the elite's entanglement with the Chinese Communist Party;
• A Supreme Court showdown over presidential authority to fire executive branch officials, discussed with Senator Mike Lee, with broader implications for the administrative state and executive power.
  Throughout, Bannon and his guests frame these stories as pivotal moments in the ongoing conservative movement – with warnings on complacency, calls to action, and critiques of both Democratic opposition and “sellout” elites in both major parties.

Key Segments and Insights

1. Redistricting Battles in Indiana and Virginia

[02:26 – 16:02]

The Fight in Indiana – Live from the Capitol

• John Fredericks Report: Live at the Indiana State Capitol as the Senate readies a key committee vote on a major redistricting bill.
• Numbers and Stakes:
  • Committee math: “There are nine committee members. We need five votes. There are four hard nos: two Democrats, two Republicans… So we need the other five.” ([03:37] D)
  • As of airtime, 23 “solid” Senate votes; need 26 on the floor. High pressure on a handful of swing senators, with aggressive phone lobbying, including from Speaker Mike Johnson.
  • Leverage threats: “MAGA…they got a billion dollars plus—they’re going to primary all these people that vote no... Also...that money that’s going to Indiana… the White House is saying we’re cutting you off, you’re not getting a dime.” ([05:46] D)
• Opposition Protests:
  • Fredericks describes a large, organized protest, nearly all “organized by either Planned Parenthood or some other left wing organization…out in force.” ([06:44] D)
  • Bannon presses: “The anxiety I felt from the leftists that we have… basically the people that are here are Marxists… They want a communist takeover of the country. Indiana is right now on the front lines to stop that.” ([08:24] C)
• The Big Picture:
  • Redistricting isn’t just about Indiana, but momentum for similar efforts in other GOP-controlled states (“It’s not two votes. It’s 20 votes. Because if we win this, it’s going to give the backbone to other Republican state houses to do the same thing. Redistrict and get us state(s) like New England, who’ve got six states without a single Republican representative.” [10:45] D)

Virginia: Warning Signs

• Bannon and Fredericks warn of a lack of effective strategy among Virginia conservatives (“no party … no infrastructure”), cautioning that a blowout defeat on a key referendum could sap momentum nationwide ([12:39–14:36]).
• “The only way to beat this… get Trump involved and get Trump voters out. Am I off-base on that?” ([14:16] C)
• Fredericks sums up: “They want to play softball… this is going to fail.” ([14:36–15:33] D)

2. AI, Chips, and America’s Elite Entanglement with China

[18:02 – 36:41]

The China Technology Dilemma

• Natalie Winters on Tech, AI, Chips:
  • Asserts that U.S. elites (from old-line Bush/Nixon/Carter families to Silicon Valley) use the threat of China as “the punching bag and the cop out”—justifying huge budgets and programs, while still facilitating business, tech transfers, and financial entanglement ([19:53] A).
  • “When we say, well, hey, let’s actually confront the Chinese Communist Party, [like] de-list them from the stock exchange, then all of a sudden—oh, no, no, no, it’s all about collaboration.” ([19:53] A)
  • Highlights a Bush family foundation leader (Neil Bush) advocating in Hong Kong for “breaking down walls” and increasing U.S.-China tech and business links. Winters’ context: “A genetic prerequisite for selling the United States out to China to speak at this forum.” ([24:43] A)
  • Cites the “Thucydides Trap” as a defeatist, elite worldview: “They are solidifying that fate by giving China these chips. It’s like refueling our enemy’s jet engines mid-war.” ([24:43] A)
• Bannon sums up the contradiction:
  • “If we’re concerned about artificial intelligence and a Sputnik-like moment...then why do you do anything to assist our enemies?… No kids in college, no people over here being trained, no access to equity capital markets… and certainly no chips.” ([27:19] C)
• Notable Quote, Winters:
  • “It is intentionally, I mean nefarious, to be giving the Chinese Communist Party access to these technologies when they’re absolutely nowhere near these capabilities. …Just so David Sacks and these types can make a quick buck… brings me a lot of sadness to see the Trump administration doing this.” ([24:43] A)
• Agency & Thucydides Trap:
  • Winters and Bannon argue American elites have “internalized” the idea that Chinese supremacy is inevitable and absolve themselves of responsibility: “It also sort of, I think, absolves them of the moral culpability of partnering with, not just an existential threat...but look at the human rights abuses.” ([31:02] A)
  • “This was supposed to happen in the dead of night… they were supposed to pull the wool over your eyes.” ([31:02] A)

Historical Context and Legacy of Sell-Outs

• The “genetic” Bush/Nixon/Carter family links to pro-China advocacy described with sarcasm; Winters recalls her first scoop as a young intern exposing Bush Foundation mask shipments to China during COVID ([36:21] A).

3. Supreme Court: Presidential Power Over Firing Executive Officials

[43:04 – 51:53]

The Case at Hand

• The Supreme Court heard arguments over whether President Trump had the authority to fire an FTC commissioner (“Rebecca Kelly Slaughter”) for not supporting his agenda—raising the larger issue of executive power over so-called “independent” agencies.
• Justice Sotomayor (clip): “Isn’t it problematic… putting not only all executive power in the President, but an incredible amount of legislative/rulemaking power and judging in the President’s hands?” ([43:50] A)
• Senator Mike Lee (Bannon guest):
  • Asserts the Constitution put “all the executive power within the U.S. Government...in the President,” and that the nearly 100-year-old Humphrey’s Executor precedent, which limits the President’s firing authority, is “lawless… it’s led to a long train of abuses and it’s a big problem. …I think… the Supreme Court is very likely to undo Humphrey’s Executor.” ([46:26] F)
  • See this as key to deconstructing “the administrative state” and putting real control back in the hands of a President.
  • “This court… is going to continue… to make decisions based on what the law actually says, rather than… some weird theory of social justice or what professors at… Ivy League institutions are telling them…” ([50:08] F)
• Notable Quote, Lee:
  • “All executive power… is vested in the President… [who] should be able to fire anyone, any employee of the Executive branch, any officer, certainly… save only the Vice President…” ([46:26] F)

4. Other Noteworthy Discussions

AI Regulation and Public Ownership

• Bannon disparages the laissez-faire approach to AI and data infrastructure buildout (“There’s more regulations on Capitol Hill right now to open a nail salon or to braid hair than in one of the most dangerous technologies mankind’s ever had.” [41:41] C)
• Raises questions of whether Americans deserve a share of AI/tech public value: “…should just the taxpayers… get a piece of the action? Not the government. I’m talking about the American citizens themselves…” ([41:41] C)

Mike Lindell Segment

• Brief check-in with Lindell on his legal fights in Minnesota regarding his recovery network and pushes MyPillow Christmas discounts for “War Room Posse.”
• Notable Bannon quip: “Promo code WAR: most powerful promo code in the business!” ([55:03] C)

Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• John Fredericks on Indiana redistricting:
  • “Let me just bottom line this, this thing has got to get out of committee within the next hour. …There are four hard nos, two Democrats and two Republicans…” ([03:15] D)
  • “If you bail on us, there are going to be repercussions. You might as well find a new line of work because you’re not going to remain a state senator. I could guarantee you that.” ([10:02] D)
• Natalie Winters on U.S.-China tech policy:
  • “They are solidifying that fate [of America’s decline] by giving China these chips. It's like refueling our enemy’s jet engines mid-war.” ([24:43] A)
• Stephen Bannon on U.S.-China AI logic:
  • “If we’re concerned about artificial intelligence…then why do you do anything to assist our enemies?… And certainly no chips. You can’t have it both ways.” ([27:19] C)
• Senator Mike Lee on presidential power:
  • “All the executive power… is vested in the President… [excluding] the Vice President… Everyone else should be able to [be fired]. …And certainly any officer wielding policy authority, making decisions, enforcing the laws...should always be removable by the President for any reason or no reason at all.” ([46:26] F)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Intro and setup: [01:35]
• Redistricting battles – Indiana/VA (John Fredericks): [02:26–16:10]
• AI/China/Chip/CCP Elites (Natalie Winters): [18:02–36:41]
• Supreme Court/Presidential Powers (Sen. Mike Lee): [43:04–51:53]
• Mike Lindell update: [52:36–55:03]

Summary

This War Room episode is a rapid-fire, emotionally charged briefing for Bannon’s conservative audience, pitched as a battlefront update in a make-or-break moment for the MAGA movement.
Main themes:

• Redistricting as political trench warfare: Indiana is at the heart, but the implications are national; MAGA is ready to punish GOP “traitors.”
• Elites “selling out” to China: Tech, finance, and political dynasties see profits, not principles—while America’s competitive edge is handed over.
• Supreme Court as bulwark against the administrative state: The Court may soon allow presidents much greater authority to reshape the executive branch.
  Throughout, Bannon and crew frame every issue—redistricting chaos, AI, China policy, the courts—as existential struggles, demanding boldness, grassroots agency, and total commitment from listeners and GOP officials alike.

Where to Follow Guests

• John Fredericks: @JFRadioShow across socials, weekdays 6–10am.
• Natalie Winters: @NatalieGWinters on all platforms, nataliejewinters.substack.com
• Sen. Mike Lee: @BasedMikeLee (X/Twitter), book: Saving Nine
• Mike Lindell: mypillow.com/warroom (promo code: WAR), 800-873-1062