THE WAR ROOM WITH STEPHEN K. BANNON, JANUARY 1ST, 2026 (EP.#5036)

Summary

Real America’s Voice – THE WAR ROOM WITH STEPHEN K. BANNON

Episode #5036 | January 1, 2026
Host: Stephen K. Bannon
Guests: Dave Brat (former Congressman), Ben Harnwell (War Room International Bureau Chief, based in Rome)

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Episode Overview

This New Year’s Day special of "The War Room with Stephen K. Bannon" sets the tone for 2026 with an emphasis on personal renewal, spiritual purpose, and community agency. Rather than focusing solely on the political and cultural events of the day, Bannon and his guests use the first episode of the year to reflect on both spiritual and personal approaches to overcoming the challenges faced by the War Room community—and, by extension, America and Western civilization. The discussion revolves around faith, the condition and revival of Christianity in the West, the power of individual agency, and the necessity of a spiritually grounded movement to take on the battles ahead.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Reflections & Rituals for the New Year

Timestamps: 07:46 – 10:16

• Bannon sets the stage by welcoming guests and viewers into the first day of 2026, reflecting on the show’s tradition of using January 1st episodes for deeper conversations.
• Dave Brat shares his New Year’s approach:
  • Focuses on personal and spiritual growth, integrating reflection, gratitude, and intentionality.
  • "We look back on the past year and we just look forward to, you know, just renewing ourselves and our country and our families and the churches. And it’s just good to reflect." (08:44 – 09:25)
  • Suggests daily prayer and worship—“pray without ceasing,” taking spiritual inventory alongside practical to-do lists.

Notable Quote

“What’s the chief end of man? … It’s to praise and glorify God. And so, you know, you just want to do that constantly ... What am I doing on this earth that matters?” — Dave Brat (10:16 – 11:59)

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2. Questions of Calling, Faith Practice, and Agency

Timestamps: 11:59 – 14:30

• Bannon asks how Brat spiritually calibrates himself and determines his purpose.
• Brat emphasizes:
  • The importance of aligning one’s heart and consciousness with God—not just on Sundays but in daily life.
  • His own journey through education, business, seminary, and economics as a pursuit of calling.
  • Figures like Kierkegaard and Dostoevsky influence his view on meaning and vocation:

    "You gotta—no one else can answer that for you ... you gotta work it out in fear and trembling." (12:27 – 14:30)

• Agency for Audience: Brat encourages listeners to discern their own gifts and roles in the broader “War Room posse.”

Notable Quote

“If I look back at my life… you can see the meaning of your life looking in the rearview mirror, right?... What does God want you to [do]? You gotta, no one else can answer that for you.” — Dave Brat (12:27 – 14:30)

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3. Cultural Critique Through Film and History

Timestamps: 24:34 – 29:53

• Interlude on Classic Films:
  • Bannon discusses the resonance and artistry of films like “Gone with the Wind,” “Waterloo Bridge,” and “That Hamilton Woman,” singling out Vivien Leigh’s performances as emblematic of a vanished cultural standard.
  • These films are contrasted with “modern social media”—implying a cultural decline.
  • Brat ties this conversation into a comment on happiness and cultural expectations, referencing Denmark & social science (“the Danes are the happiest because they have the lowest expectations”—a metaphorical lesson for contentment and perspective).

Notable Moments

• On old films vs. social media:

  “You compare that to modern social media... I wish we could go back to the great films...” — Dave Brat (29:20–29:53)

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4. Spiritual Revival and Cultural Change

Timestamps: 34:36 – 55:27

• Ben Harnwell joins from Rome, reflecting on personal sacrifice (standing in the cold for the Christmas Eve show) and the feeling of historical gravity at the Vatican and Church of the Nativity.
• Catholic/Christian crisis and hope:
  • Harnwell criticizes Pope Leo’s suggestion that the West should model itself on Lebanon’s “tolerant” Christian-Muslim dynamic, pointing out the dramatic demographic decline of Christians there over a century.
  • “If Pope Leo thinks that we in the West… are going to tolerate that dynamic… he has no idea of the fighting spirit…” (41:51 – 44:02)
• Revival Among Youth:
  • Harnwell notes a “radicalized” Christian revival, especially among 18-24 year old men, seen in increased church attendance and spiritual fervor.
  • This is seen as a spiritual counteroffensive to societal decline—“going back to the roots of Christianity.”
  • “If you live the faith with integrity, with joy, with peace, that will attract people guaranteed a thousand percent.” (54:15 – 55:27)

Notable Quotes

“There is something taking place in the 18 to 24-year-old male block in terms of Christian church attendance. A picker, an uptick… a very strong sense of radicalization… young guys who are going back to the roots of Christianity and they’re living it with a coherence and a confidence that has not been seen in the west for at least 100 years.” — Ben Harnwell (51:52 – 54:15)

“Jesus Christ never told us in order to win our battles, we need to be a numerical majority … he indicated we would be the yeast that makes the bread rise.” — Ben Harnwell (54:30 – 55:27)

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5. The Battle Ahead: Agency, Determination, and Spiritual Foundation

Timestamps: 55:27 – End

• Bannon pulls the themes together, underlining that what sets apart War Room’s achievements is the audience’s sense of personal “agency”—taking responsibility, standing firm in faith, and working daily for “the long, tough year ahead.”
• Community, commitment, and spiritual grounding are highlighted as the tools that have carried the movement through past challenges and will be vital in facing future ones.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

| Timestamp | Speaker | Quote | |-------------|-------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 08:44 | Dave Brat | "We look back on the past year and we just look forward to, you know, just renewing ourselves and our country and our families and the churches. And it’s just good to reflect."| | 10:16 | Dave Brat | “What’s the chief end of man? ... It’s to praise and glorify God. And so, you know, you just want to do that constantly..."| | 12:27 | Dave Brat | “If I look back at my life… you can see the meaning of your life looking in the rearview mirror, right?... What does God want you to [do]? You gotta, no one else can answer that for you.”| | 29:20 | Dave Brat | “You compare that to modern social media... I wish we could go back to the great films...” | | 41:51 | Ben Harnwell | "If Pope Leo thinks that we in the West… are going to tolerate that dynamic… he has no idea of the fighting spirit…" | | 51:52 | Ben Harnwell | "There is something taking place in the 18 to 24-year-old male block in terms of Christian church attendance. A picker, an uptick… a very strong sense of radicalization…" | | 54:30 | Ben Harnwell | “Jesus Christ never told us in order to win our battles, we need to be a numerical majority…he indicated we would be the yeast that makes the bread rise.”| | 55:27 | Steve Bannon | "[We have succeeded] because of your agency and your stick-to-itiveness, your work." |

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Important Segments & Timestamps

• Reflections on the New Year’s show tradition & personal spiritual practice: 07:46 – 14:30
• Discussion of film, cultural standards then and now: 24:34 – 29:53
• Ben Harnwell from Rome: Vatican reflections, Christian demographics, revival, and challenge to the Pope: 34:36 – 44:02
• Signs of Christian revival among youth, faith as “agency” in a difficult world: 51:52 – 55:27
• Bannon on the coming year, personal agency, and community responsibility: 55:27 – 57:22

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Tone & Language

The episode’s tone is reflective, earnest, and occasionally combative (“the primal scream of a dying regime … we’re going medieval on these people”—Steve, 06:55). The language is colloquial but often rises to loftier, almost sermonic heights when discussing faith and culture. There are moments of both humor and nostalgia (for classic films, traditional values, “the tartan vest,” etc.), balanced by a strong call to action and seriousness about the ideological, spiritual, and cultural battles ahead.

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Summary for the Uninitiated

This New Year’s episode of the War Room eschews day-to-day news for a wide-ranging conversation about spiritual renewal, Western decline and potential rebirth, the role of individual purpose and agency, and the need for a faith-driven countercultural movement. It’s a mixture of motivational talk, spiritual reflection, and cultural critique—aimed at energizing listeners for the long campaign ahead, and rooting that fight in both faith and history.

Transcript

[Stephen K. Bannon]

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[Dave Brat]

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[Dave Brat]

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[Dave Brat]

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[Josh Whalen]

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[Dave Brat]

Is yet for all night time and.

[Steve]

Surely I'll buy more.

[Dave Brat]

For.

[Steve]

We too have had.

[Dave Brat]

Sa. Sight and there my trust.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

For all I.

[Dave Brat]

Will drink a cup of kindness yet.

[Steve]

This is the primal scream of a dying regime. Pray for our enemies because we're going medieval on these people. Reasons I got a free shot. All these networks lying about the people, the people have had a belly full of it. I know you don't like hearing that. I know you try to do everything in the world to stop that, but you're not going to stop it. It's good going to happen.

[Sponsor Announcer]

And where do people like that go.

[Josh Whalen]

To share the big lie?

[Dave Brat]

MAGA Media I wish in my soul.

[Steve]

I wish that any of these people had a conscience. Ask yourself, what is my task and what is my purpose? If that answer is to save my country, this country will be saved.

[Josh Whalen]

War Room here's your host, Stephen K. Banner.

[Dave Brat]

Foreign.

[Steve]

It's Thursday, one January in the year of our Lord, 2026. First time we get to say that. Pretty amazing. 2025 behind us. Great show yesterday. Want to thank everybody associated with it that wrapped up the year. And we're starting off with talking about as we always do on January 1st, do something a little different about the year ahead and kind of what the focus has to be and the energy has to be. I know a lot of people are still getting over last night. If you still go out and participate that way and enjoy some of I guess the traditional go out and have a party and get to see folks and ring out the old and ring in the new. Dave Bratt joins me. Ben Harnwell, also in Rome is going to be here momentarily. Dave Brad so first off, Dave, you had a good, you had a good Christmas, Christmas season and kicking off the new year, right?

[Dave Brat]

Yes, it was great. I went up to Notre Dame, hung out with you Catholics and family up there was great. And now I'm back with Auld Lang Syne. I wish I was Scottish. I wore my tartan plaid, Scottish plaid by accident. Must be providential. The Presbyterians in Scotland. I wish I was Scottish. I'm Dutch, but yeah, I'm just looking forward to the new year, personal growth, just all the things we love. We look back on the past year and we just look forward to, you know, just renewing ourselves and our country and our families and the churches. And it's just good to reflect.

[Steve]

Yeah. No, I think this is the seventh, seventh year in a row. I think we've done this, the kickoff of the new year, and they've had some. We had a couple, I think, very serious talks. I was very serious on a couple of these about what was to come before us. But everybody in the Warren posse accomplished their task and it's the reason that we're moving, that everything's moving forward. Talk to me about your personally. People want to know more about Dave. Brad, New Year's resolutions. How do you, in fact, when the year ends, how do you take stock and how do you think about the coming year? And do you do a spiritual inventory of where you've been and where you're going, or you do one just from the practical. My to do list and what I want to accomplish. How does Dave Bratt go about this? Inquiring minds want to know.

[Dave Brat]

Yeah, no, I just kind of. I try to pray all day. You know, you're supposed to pray without ceasing. And, you know, I start off, I listen to the Bible on the way into school. I recommend everybody should get a Bible app. I was listening to. I listened to Job. I learned something new about Job. I got a smart friend up here that taught me something about Job and then went straight into Psalms. And if you've never just listened to the psalms, I mean, you just can't beat it. I don't think we do a good enough job worshiping God. Right. We're always asking God for stuff and asking God to save the country and our schools and the kids and all that, but I don't think we do enough. So that's kind of one thing I'm trying to push myself. How do I, you know, praise God and give that. That's why we're on Earth according to the Protestant catechism and the Catholic Baltimore. What's the chief end of man? It's. It's the chief question. What's the. Why are we on the planet? And it's to praise and Glorify God. And so, you know, you. You just want to do that constantly. And then, you know, you. You want to kind of ingrain it so it's not just a Sunday faith you want. What am I doing on this earth that matters in the War Room posse? I really don't need preach to the choir there, but, you know, the one thing everyone here can do is spread this platform to your friends. Because as you've seen over the past week on the War Room, we have major challenges all over the globe and more importantly, internally. And so, you know, just think, how has God put you? What. What gifts has God given you where you can make your difference and then encourage others? Because we need everyone on board, right? That's what the church is. All different parts of the body working together.

[Steve]

You say, pray without ceasing. Is your concept or what you're taught in your. In the Presbyterian Church or your sect or part of the Presbyterian Church that is that the. You're worshiping God throughout the day, or is your work and your effort to move forward his plan as it's manifesting through you? Is that your work? And is that good enough?

[Dave Brat]

Yeah, nothing's good enough. Even Jesus said, why do you call me good? Only the Father in heaven is good. So, boy, there's a statement that puts us all in our place. But, yeah, no, it just means to have your soul geared, right? Your consciousness, your soul, your heart all aligned toward God all day. Now, of course, no one does that, right? It's all about me. It's the me generation. Me, me, me. And so everyone, of course, thinks about their own personal advancement and how you can make yourself look good and how to wear your tartan vest on TV and these kind of superficial things that don't matter. But, yeah, I mean, if I. If I look back at my life, you know, Kierkegaard, I think, said you could see your. Your life in the past. You know, you look, we're looking forward in the new year, but you can see the meaning of your life looking in the rear view mirror, right? So you look back and I. I was blessed with a great family, mom and dad and the faith, good churches going there. Went to Hope College in Holland, Michigan, with a bunch of Dutch Reformed theologian types. Really good academic background. Then worked in business a little bit. Arthur Anderson. But then I felt the call to seminary, and then I went and did my PhD in economics. But all of that was linked toward the calling, right? Toward what can I do? I worked at the World bank while I was doing my PhD to help the poorest of the poor. And so, you know, you just gotta. What does God want you to. You gotta. No one else can answer that for you, right? When I talk to kids go to the career center here at Liberty, you know, you have to know what. What God, what? You know, I don't hear anything. I don't hear anything direct in my tradition. There's no. I don't hear the direct voice of God. You've got to tease that out, right? Work it out in fear and trembling. I think also as either Kierkegaard or Dostoevsky said. But that that's. It's just a daily pattern of just trying to be there with God. God's always there. We know that. But you got to put yourself into that, into that faith stance every day. The.

[Steve]

Your Dutch reform. I think you've told me that before. You know, there was a movie. I don't know if you ever see George C. Scott. In George C. Scott, there's movie about the Dutch reform up in Michigan. The movie Hardcore. Did you ever see George C. Scott made this?

[Dave Brat]

Now that you say it, yeah.

[Steve]

Yeah, it was. It was. They positioned the Dutch Reformed as quite a dour people. It was the whole thing of the kid running away, the young daughter running away to California and bad times befell her. I don't want to give away the plot, but it's. It starts with the Dutch Reformed up in Michigan as being a particularly dour group. I don't think the Bratz are dour people though.

[Dave Brat]

Right.

[Steve]

You come at things with a very life affirming. Dave Brat's got a twinkle in his eye, as they say. Talk to me about how is your. I tell you what, what we're going to do is we've got beautiful music. One of the reasons I love doing these specials over the Christmas season, our team here goes out of the way to make sure that we get fantastic, fantastic music that takes us in and out from different sources. I think we have a different version. We're going to play different versions of Auld Lang Syne, which happens to be one of my. One of my favorite songs. So we're going to have a different version from one of the choral societies in the 50s. Let's go ahead out. We're going to be back. You've got Ben Harnwell and Stephen K. Bannon here and Dave Brady.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

And Days of all Lang Syne.

[Dave Brat]

For all thanks for all.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

We take a cup of kindness yet for all thine sign and here's a hand My trusty friend and he's a.

[Dave Brat]

Hand of thine will take.

[Sponsor Announcer]

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[Steve]

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[Dave Brat]

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[Josh Whalen]

If you're paying more than $1 a month for any ED or hair medication, listen up at Joy and Blokes when you start TRT or Enclomiphene, you can add any ED or hair loss prescription for just $1 a month. $1 add ons with your hormone plan and right now all labs are 50% off. I'm Josh Whalen, founder of Joy and Blokes. I built this company because men are tired of paying for fragmented care without results. Every Joy and Blokes lab includes a visit with a licensed clinician who connects your symptoms to your biomarkers. You'll get a real plan that covers hormones, performance and confidence. If you're considering TRT or Enclomiphene, this is the most efficient way to do it. Get [e-mail] and use a promo code podcast. New customers get 50% off their labs and for a limited time, you can take advantage of our $1ed or hair loss add ons when you start TRT or Enclomiphene. Not available in all states. Compounded medications are not FDA approved. Learn [e-mail] SA.

[Dave Brat]

Ram.

[Steve]

I think we've done this the last couple of years. That's one of my favorite segments of the worm. So right there you saw that's a Japanese vocal star, recording star that was inspired to do that and somebody was inspired to lay that on top of a really not a trailer, but a two or three minute compilation of scenes from Waterloo Bridge. Why is this important? Well, if you, if you. They don't make them like they used to three years in a row. That's Vivien Leigh, the star. Vivien Leigh made Gone with the Wind with Clark Gable. As everybody knows, she plays girl over here. She then made a, a war film as England was getting ready to go to war is already, I guess in the war after 1939 called Waterloo Bridge. She plays a tragic lover of Robert Taylor and a magnificent film. But after Gone with the Wind, this film was shot in black and white. But it is a, it's a love story. A very powerful discussion about war in Waterloo Bridge. Then she made I think one of my all time favorites, that Hamilton woman. But the tragic nature of the. Of the affair of Lady Emma Hamilton. And of course my hero growing up as a kid, Lord Horatio Nelson, played by Sir Lawrence Olivier who was her husband at the time. She shot that in a row. And of course this film is a very controversial film because later it was. There was almost going to have an investigation about it about how Churchill and MI6 had used, as I say, propaganda tool to actually get the United States on the side of England in World War II. But if you ever get a chance to see all three of them, you'll see Vivian Leigh at her height of her power in the late 1930s, early 1940s as a magnificent. I mean no comparison to Vivien Lee at the top of her game. Gone with the Win with Clark Gable. Waterloo Bridge with Robert Taylor. Robert Taylor maybe not as well known today, but was a huge star back in the back in the late 30s, 40s and 50s. And of course that Hamilton woman with Sir Lawrence Olivier. And so if you got any time of a holiday weekend, the last two shot in black and white, remember that's after the Magnificent. What Technicolor shooting that took so long for Going with the Wind. Everything's in this magnificent color even today. So much more vibrant than most films as you see it made in 19. In 1939, actually probably made in 1938 and 39. Dave Brett and Dave Brett we have pulled from the files and we'll play later a. A film it's about to. About to know about the Dutch. It's George C. Scott in one of. I think George C. Scott's best. I think it's his best role. He had post Post Patton was the movie hardcore about the. About Calvinist Dutch reform up in Michigan and it's fantastic. Brad, are you much of a. We got hardware? Yeah, go ahead.

[Dave Brat]

Yeah, yeah. Yeah, on that note, the dower. On the dour note. Of course, my dad was raised in a dour household coming out of the Great Depression. So, you know, there's a little bit of that going on as well historically. But Morley Safer did a thing a while back, it seems like yesterday was 2008. He wanted to take in depth look at the happiest people on earth, which were the Danish. And they, after, you know, regressing on all the normal variables, you know, like income and all these kind of things. And they showed the people on the subway, the Danes on the subway, they look pretty dour. They're all looking at their feet. They're not smiling. They're not, you know, young social designers like we got today. And they said, what's the, what's the main reason why the Danes are the happiest people on the Earth in international comparisons for years? And the answer is because they have the lowest expectations. And so there's your, you know, I don't push that on everybody. But it's kind of a humorous. Right. They're happy because they exceed their expectations. Right. So that's a, that's a clever little way to think about happiness. Brad.

[Steve]

Brad, you've always got a bounce in your step though, for coming. And I always tease you about the, because the Presbyterians of you from the south, the American south, you know that Stonewall Jackson and so many of us, so many of our great generals in the, in the Confederate army during the Civil War were Presbyterian, they kind of came from that, that hardy stock and always give you, always give you a hard time that you've got that upbeat personality that the George C. Scott in the movie has got the Stonewall Jackson personality.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Right?

[Steve]

It's not, he's not giving you, he's not giving you, he's not giving you a warm fuzzy at any time.

[Dave Brat]

Yeah, I, I admire.

[Steve]

Go ahead, go ahead.

[Dave Brat]

No, I admire those types. Those are the ones you look at the historical clips. You just showed that, that clip you shown, I'm surprised it's not outlawed. It's got a handsome man and a beautiful woman in it. And I mean that, that stunning. You compare that to modern social media. And I wish we could go back to the great films. There's one Good Guys film this year, F1 came out and it was like a Rocky film. I went to the gym the next morning and wanted to do push ups and everything and they're just missing. And so.

[Steve]

Got Brad motivated, by the way, on Waterloo Bridge. Let me give you a heads up when you see this film, this film is a very hard film. I mean, the, the film, look, Gone with the Winds, I think is a tough film. Waterloo Bridge, a very tough film. And that Hamilton Woman is an extremely tough film. They didn't pull any punches on this in Waterloo Bridge. When you watch, it's about Vivien Leigh as a ballerina in London. But what happens during her journey with this war hero played by Robert Taylor, I think he's a colonel, is totally unexpected. You will not anticipate the middle of the film and the end of the film with the beginning, because back then I think they realized that adults can handle adult topics and you don't have to do it in a sleazy or perverted way. But Vivian Lee, just absolutely incredible. Anyway, let's hang. I got my favorite segment of the year and we do it right at the top of the show. Ben Harnwell, he's a little under the weather. We're going to find out. Is that from a New Year's Eve party or is he just under the weather? And Dave Bratz with us. We're going to leave you with the pipes. My favorite song. It's New Year's Day. It's one January in the year of our Lord 2026. To take a short break. Be back in the warm in just a moment. Sam.

[Sponsor Announcer]

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[Stephen K. Bannon]

Q U S T.com Spin Quest is.

[Dave Brat]

A free to play social casino void where prohibited. Visit spinquest.com for more details.

[Josh Whalen]

If you're paying more than $1 a month for any ED or hair medication, listen up at Joy and Blokes. When you start TRT or enclomiphene, you can add any ED or hair loss prescription for just $1 a month. $1 add ons with your hormone plan and right now all labs are 50% off. I'm Josh Whalen, founder of Joy and Blokes. I built this company because men are tired of paying for fragmented care without results. Every Joy and Blokes lab includes a visit with a licensed clinician who connects your symptoms to your biomarkers. You'll get a real plan that covers hormones, performance and confidence. If you're considering TRT or enclomiphene, this is the most efficient way to do it. Get [e-mail] and use a promo code podcast new customers get 50% off their labs and for a limited time, you can take advantage of our $1ed or hair loss add ons when you start TRT or enclomiphene. Not available in all states. Compounded medications are not FDA approved. Learn more at joyandblo.com should all acquain.

[Steve]

Should all acquaintance be forgot and days.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Of all and son.

[Steve]

For all land thanks Sign my dear for all. Will take a cup o kindness yet and days of falling sun. Welcome back. We're gonna play that in its entirety. That's recording star Sissel. I think it is Norwegian stunning voice. Ben Harnwell joins us. Got Dave Brett here to kick off the new year. We're maybe not at the intensity level that we are in the morning war room. And the reason is you're kicking off the year. We're gonna get into this thing. We're gonna work our way into this thing. Ben, you're a little under the weather. Is it because the audience already is asking? The Warren posse is asking is because did you have a late night or all nighter in Rome? I realize you guys have these big sophisticated swank parties that you're, you know, black tie, elegant women around, very aristocratic. Is that what you were doing all night? And you just joining us here this.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Morning, first thing to do is to Steve, you and Dave Bratt wish you a very happy new year or buonano as we say here in Italy. I like the idea that when you think of Ben Harwell and the international bureau, you think of black tie, even white tie soirees. Actually, I am a bit under the weather. I don't think it's over indulgence from last night. If you want, if you want to have the heroic points attributed in my column. I think it was the, the a week ago from Christmas Eve when you had me out in St. Peter's Piazza in the cold. Hold it Hang on the driving wind.

[Steve]

And listen, I. Is that, is that, is that. Because that was. That Christmas Eve show is one of the best shows I think we've ever done. And I want to thank you and I want to thank Jason Jones and everybody at the Church of the Nativity. The pastor that runs it cutting between Manger Square and St. Peter's Square, I thought was fantastic. Now, we didn't have the traditional crowds and all the energy coming out of St. Peter's Square because it was a cold driving rain that had been a cold driving rain all day. And I should tell you, the International Bureau, when Ben goes and sets up, he doesn't take. Jason Jones had a, had an appropriate crew because Jason's making a documentary film over there. He had lighting, he had his sound guy there. He had cameramen, he had some, you know, warm, hot coffee off to the side. You didn't have any of that, did you, Ben? You run on. The War Room International Bureau runs on a sparser budget.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

That's one way of putting it. No, but I do have a. I do have illumination, actually. I like to think of myself as being quite well lit for our external broadcast segments, but it was a solitary experience. I. Let's put like that in St. Peter's Square on Christmas Eve. Let's just say, Steve, I, I took one for the team in order to bring that one for the War Room posse, you know, so I'm, I'm a bit. I'm a bit under the weather, that's all Fighting on.

[Josh Whalen]

Have you been?

[Dave Brat]

Have you been?

[Steve]

Have you been? Have you been sick? But I just want to be. I just want to note that I'm always pushing for a higher budget for the International Bureau. It's. It's Grace Chong, who also, besides being queen of the trolls, also doubles as our chief financial officer, chief operating officer. Whatever Mo doesn't do, she does. And so she's always one. Talk to me about paring back the extravagance of the, of the Rome. Of the Rome Bureau. So I am fighting for you, Ben, all the time. I'm fighting for you all the time, Ben. Did you really get the cold because of the.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, it was pretty. It was nice to, Nice to know that in internal, in the internal accountancy review sessions, I have one person fighting for me in my corner. Sort of cheery news.

[Steve]

But. But you should know. No, I never. I never. Grace always wins. Let's say that Grace is always the final. She gets the final say so on all things resource wise. Let's Go back there for a second because we are kicking off the year and talking about really personal motivation, team motivation, you know, kind of what to look forward to. But really these are more. We deal with the daily, you know, material of what's happening in throughout the world and the, you know, the use of agency, which we always talk about. I want to go back because that was a show we kind of conceived it. Didn't know if we could pull it off. Just thank God Jason happened to be over there. And the Church of the Nativity really helped out because we had the pastor there. But I think those shows did, I think that show did juxtapose, you know, particularly what's going on in that vital part of the world. We got some real insights into really the plight of Christianity in the ancient home of Christianity, not simply Israel and Judea Samaria, but also in the desert church. I haven't had a chance to catch up with you because you've been on the go and your six o' clock shows you've been doing have just been extraordinary. I've gotten so many compliments from people of all the great work that you're doing both on the international side on the Friday show and then on the traditional, Catholic, traditional Christian side on the Wednesday show. But what were your thoughts about it being there at the Vatican and seeing the reporting live from the Church in the Nativity?

[Stephen K. Bannon]

It was a special moment for me personally to be able to be there and feel that connection and as you say, with the parish priest, the actual parish priest of the Church of the Nativity in that live in that broadcast. That was special. You know, this seeing as we're going to just pick up on, on the themes of that Christmas Eve show, that gives me an opportunity to mention something I didn't actually get to, to mention on the show itself. But it was pretty important and for time reasons I would have done it. And that's the fact that that Pope Leo, who I like to think we have an objective view about, we're not fanboys. I like to think we were capable of objective criticism. When he went to Lebanon a month or so ago on his first visit to the Middle east, he actually highlighted Lebanon as a country. It was a model country of tolerance between Muslims and Christians for us to imitate here in the West. And Steve, that's, that's such an outrageous thing. I think for someone who is acclaimed to be the successor of St. Peter to say, because one has an immediate conclusion, either this guy is a well meaning buffoon or he's A cipher, something worse. The story of Lebanon is absolutely horrific from a Christian perspective. If you go back 100 years, I think in the early 1920s was the last official census in the Lebanon, Steve. It was 53% Christian, 47% Muslim. Now, they haven't had any official censuses since then, but the most recent informal one that they did, I think, looking at the educational roles, put the Christian proportion from an overall majority down to 15%, 15% Christian, 85% Muslim. If Pope Leo thinks that we in the. In the west, in Christendom, are going to tolerate that dynamic and to do it supinely and passively and just accept that dictat from him, he has no idea of the fighting spirit which is moving right across Europe and especially the United States, especially with young guys in their 20s who are showing, if you're looking at social media, are showing absolute heroic witness to the Christian faith. That is, I say, one of the tributaries to this phenomenon is the martyrdom, the public martyrdom of Charlie Kirk. And the revival that we said on the show was going to take place due to the Holy Spirit following that appalling event. But there is something taking place. And at that very moment, the Pope comes out and says, we in the west need to imitate the Christian Islamic dynamic of Lebanon. I would say this to the Pope, Holy Father, you could not be more wrong. And we're not going to accept it. And that's why I think you mentioned the shows that we do on Wednesday. That's why I think that the War Room has such an important role to play in this revival of Christianity, which is a spiritual revival first and foremost, and that will have riches. Right. Following right on from that, but obviously also including in the political, cultural fears as well.

[Steve]

Do you see that? Do you see that happening? Are you getting a feeling that. I mean, I think we see it politically somewhat. I think we're seeing it spiritually, but you're on top of this more than I am in Europe. Do you honestly think that that's. Do you think that's happening? Because. And this kind of kicks off our January 1st. You know, the substance of it, this is one of the biggest things that's before us today. If you take out, you know, artificial. Not take out. If you look at artificial intelligence and everything it's doing in the race for the singularity to dehumanize us, to move past Homo sapiens and past man in the image and likeness of God, on top of that, you add this fight between Christendom and really, atheism this Marxist atheism and jihadist combination. Do you honestly, do you see the I tell you what, let's listen to this music because it's a great way to kick off the year. Ben Harnwell's in Rome, Dave Bratz in the United States of America. We're here at one of our traveling War Room studios. We're going to take a short commercial break, let you listen to some great music. We're going to be back in a moment.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

We do. Yet for all thy sign and here's a hand, my trusty friend and he's.

[Dave Brat]

A hand of Thine.

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[Josh Whalen]

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[Steve]

To the war room. So, Ben, question to you first. And then today, Brad, are you actually seeing this and feeling it? Because it would be one of the because I honestly think we need a moment like the Crusades to turn this thing around. You can see in Western Europe, I think you're seeing the fall of Christendom. I don't think there's any other way to look at it. And it's going to take some very determined individuals and they're out there. But are you actually seeing this as a movement? I mean, it's one of the reasons we're going to Texas on It's not just the 9th of January. I'll have other things to report. In fact, if we can in the next hour, I want to get it up. We're virtually sold out of tickets. But I want everybody in the area, a grapevine that can come should definitely come. And we're going to have other things around it. I think I'm going to spend a couple of days down there because it's that important to us what's happening here in this country and particularly you can see in Texas the, is Texas the first among equals? I don't know. I come from the Commonwealth of Virginia. We're very proud of our heritage. But what Virginia's deteriorated to. It's the data center capital of the world because of all the deep state that's up in Northern Virginia by Dulles Airport. That whole corridor down there is nothing but deep state companies and they've now trashed Northern Virginia and becoming the data, not just the, it's the, it's the deep state that all, all the companies are there. But now you've got these data centers that just kind of ruined the entire thing. So Texas is so vitally important to us. Are you seeing this in Europe, Ben? You can actually point to it and you can feel it.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Well, let me answer that this way, Steve. You mentioned earlier the Wednesday show that we do, which is a recap of what's going on in Christianity, specifically focusing on, but not exclusively, not exclusively at all on traditional Catholicism. So we have this show, we have Liz, your known obviously to the war room posse, the legendary Frank Walker from Canon 212 and Jenny Holland. And Jenny Holland every week comes to us and recounts a development on exactly what you're talking about here, which is the revival, the Christian revival in the West. And she does this by picking A key story to be the New York Times, the Washington Post. Right. So these aren't natural voices that are encouraging, let's put it like that, the revival of Christianity and every single story is the same. There is something taking place in the 18 to 24 year old male block in terms of Christian church attendance. A picker, an uptick. And it's not contradictory to what you're saying, which is the fact that we're, that we are losing the battle here in occupied Europe because there are two parallel movements. And this is what we talk about on Wednesday, on our Wednesday evening show. Two parallel movements taking place. One of them is the falling away of cultural affinity, church going, that is to say, three or four generations of people who no longer have any sense of supernatural faith in Jesus Christ are simply ceasing to go to church anymore because let's face it, why bother? Unless you actually do believe. On the other hand, what is taking place is you have in that young, especially male cohort a very strong sense of radicalization. Let's look at that word. If you give me 30 seconds, Steve. Well, radicalization, the true meaning of that word comes from Latin radix radicis, that means to the root. It means the root. Okay, so we're talking about radicalization. What we're talking about here in the Christian context are young guys who are going back to the roots of Christianity and they're living it with a coherence and a confidence that has not been seen in the west for at least 100 years. And that is going to bring, that is going to bring spiritual fruit. Jesus Christ never told us in order to win our battles, we need to be a numerical majority. In fact, he pointed, he indicated would be the yeast that makes the bread rise. That's something I can't underline enough quantitatively. Extremely tiny, right? But it, but if you live the faith with integrity, with joy, with peace, that will attract people guaranteed a thousand percent. Because God made us to respond to the gospel and he made us to respond to the gospel being lived with coherence and with credibility. And that's what's taking place now. Steve, you're going to ask me, is it going to be too little, too late, or will it swing the tide? And I don't know the answer to that question. All I know, all I can say is that I think what the Holy Spirit wants us to do is to be the best witnesses to Jesus Christ that we can possibly be in whatever sphere the Holy Spirit has given to us to operate in.

[Steve]

Very powerful. Okay, in the next hour. We're coming up to the hour break in the next hour. I got Brett and I've got Harnwell. We're going to talk about how they go through the end of the year and how they rejuvenate themselves from the beginning of the year and talk about everybody in the audience, your personal agency. When Ben talks right there about this rejuvenation among young men 18 to 24, it's about the use of agency, of God working through you as Divine Providence does. And so we're going to talk about that as kind of the motivational kickoff. We've got a long, tough year ahead of us, but we've had a bunch of long, tough years ahead of us, and our accomplishments are unparalleled. Why? Because of your agency and your stick to itiveness, your work. We're going to take a short commercial break. We're returning to the worm in just a moment.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

My.

[Steve]

We too have.

[Dave Brat]

In the stream from.

[Steve]

Morning sun till D.

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[Dave Brat]

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[Stephen K. Bannon]

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[Stephen K. Bannon]

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[Dave Brat]

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[Steve]

So to recap, I have more time.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

To catch up on life while someone.

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[Steve]

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[Stephen K. Bannon]

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[Josh Whalen]

If you're paying more than $1 a month for any ED or hair medication. Listen up at Joy and Blokes when you start TRT or Enclomiphene, you can add any ED or hair loss prescription for just $1 a month. $1 add ons with your hormone plan and right now all labs are 50% off. I'm Josh Whalen, founder of Joy and Blokes. I built this company because men are tired of paying for fragmented care without results. Every Joy and Blokes lab includes a visit with a licensed clinician who connects your symptoms to your biomarkers. You'll get a real plan that covers hormones, performance and confidence. If you're considering TRT or Enclomiphene, this is the most efficient way to do it. Get [e-mail] and use a promo code. Podcast new customers get 50% off their labs and for a limited time you can take advantage of our $1 ed or hair loss add ons when you start TRT or Enclomiphene. Not available in all states. Compounded medications are not FDA approved. Learn [e-mail] this is an I Heart podcast.

[Stephen K. Bannon]

Guaranteed human.