Former Republican operative and Jeb Bush aide Tim Miller confronted Steve Bannon—the infamous White nationalist who served as former Republican President Donald Trump's chief strategist until a rather contentious falling out—over his election denial.
Miller referred to Bannon as "the king of the ‘stop the steal’ movement” in an interview shared this week by the Showtime political documentary series The Circus. He also asked Bannon why Kari Lake—a QAnon adherent and election denier who was the Republican nominee in Arizona's gubernatorial race and lost—continues to rehash falsehoods the 2020 general presidential election was stolen.
A recalcitrant Bannon predicted a Republican-controlled House will “adjudicate the 2020 election all through November" and have "a real J6 commitee" suggesting ongoing investigations by the House Select Committee tasked with investigating the January 6 insurrection are little more than a partisan exercise.
A visibly frustrated Miller told Bannon:
"You don't really believe this sh*t."
You can watch their interaction in the video below.
\u201cMy exchange with the multi-shirted multi-indicted Steve Bannon on this weeks @SHO_TheCircus\u201d— Tim Miller (@Tim Miller) 1668460615
Of course, Bannon doubled down, downplaying the significance of the insurrection, which took place when a mob of former Republican President Donald Trump's supporters attacked the nation's seat of government on the false premise the election had been stolen.
When Miller pointed out that "people stormed the Capitol over this sh*t" and that "these were lies," Bannon claimed that the attack was not the fault of Trump but the fault of a group of reactionary supporters.
But Miller responded:
"If you weren't lying about it, it wouldn't have happened. Come on, you don't believe this man."
"I'll argue with you over the border. You don't believe this sh*t. I'm not doing this."
Miller then walked away, leaving Bannon mid-sentence.
After Miller posted a clip of his encounter with Bannon to Twitter, many criticized Bannon for continuing to double down on the "Big Lie" and praised Miller for refusing to back down.
\u201cWhy Republicans keep LOSING. #RepublicansInDisarray #RepublicansAreSoreLOSERS\u201d— Jo Lown \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\udf3b\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6 \ud83c\udfa8\ud83c\udf34\ud83c\udf0a (@Jo Lown \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\udf3b\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6 \ud83c\udfa8\ud83c\udf34\ud83c\udf0a) 1668545117
\u201cAny reporter not doing exactly this is complicit in the right wing extremist ongoing coup attempt by failing to properly identify the threat & attempt to undermine democracy by laundering & normalizing disinformation, xenophobia, fascism & political violence.\u201d— Luddite\ud83c\udf3b push the overton window toward humanity. (@Luddite\ud83c\udf3b push the overton window toward humanity.) 1668474956
\u201cYou killed it!!! Thanks for not giving his propaganda and lies a platform.\u201d— I Am A Blue Light (Parody) (@I Am A Blue Light (Parody)) 1668533530
\u201cNow that is how you confront deniers\u201d— BogeyKC (@BogeyKC) 1668474501
\u201cTim lights up Bannon. A must watch.\u201d— Jeff Timmer (@Jeff Timmer) 1668476850
\u201cTim Miller for the win....and reason\u201d— Lee Annis (@Lee Annis) 1668478079
\u201cAgain, why is stuff like this so rare? Why doesn't EVERY JOURNALIST do this to Bannon? And Trump? And all of their acolytes?\u201d— Be kind to people and ruthless to systems (@Be kind to people and ruthless to systems) 1668530664
\u201cThis is how to do it. This is always how to do it.\u201d— Omar (@Omar) 1668469151
\u201cThank you, Tim Miller for showing how to dismantle a lying sociopath. Take notes MSM\u201d— Rosalinda Prociutto (@Rosalinda Prociutto) 1668475327
Miller's interview with Bannon took place as Bannon continues to contend with a myriad of legal troubles.
In September, he was charged with state-level money laundering and conspiracy counts in New York related to a "We Build The Wall" fundraising campaign to build a wall on the nation's southern border.
Bannon turned himself into authorities, marking a striking development in a case from which he'd been previously spared federal prosecution because of a pardon by Trump on the last day of his presidency in 2021.
Bannon was also recently charged with contempt of Congess for refusing to cooperate with a House investigation into the January 6 insurrection, a fact he has claimed is evidence of a smear plot against him. He was convicted on both counts in a jury trial over the summer.
Last month, Bannon was sentenced to four months in prison and a $6,500 fine, rather than the six-month statutory maximum and a fine of $200,000 as the prosecution requested. However, on November 4, he appealed his conviction and sentence, which put his sentence on hold.
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