Discussing populism, conservative betrayals, and the left, Steve Bannon shares his views on how true change can happen. (Screenshot: GB News)
In a recent interview on GB News America with Steven Edginton, former Trump advisor Steve Bannon delivered a scathing critique of conservative parties in the UK and the US, accusing them of betraying their voters and failing to uphold their promises.
Bannon emphasized the need for grassroots movements and political will to bring about meaningful change.
Bannon opened the discussion by distinguishing himself from traditional conservatives, identifying instead as a populist nationalist.
He argued that conservative parties globally have become “controlled opposition,” who are unwilling to take the necessary measures to enact real change. This failure, he claimed, has led to a significant loss of trust among voters and the rise of populist movements.
“I’m not a conservative; I’m a populist nationalist. I mean, the conservatives are what’s called controlled opposition. They’re afraid of taking the measures they need to take. This is why the conservatives in Europe have been overthrown by what they call right-wing parties, these populist nationalists. You call it the sovereignty movement; here, we call it populism nationalism,” Bannon said.
Focusing on the UK, Bannon criticized the Tory party for shifting towards the center-left and failing to uphold the policies outlined in their 2010 manifesto. He highlighted their inability to address key issues such as immigration and economic policy, leading to a disconnect with their voter base. According to Bannon, this betrayal is rooted in cowardice and a lack of political will.
For context, the Tories were a loosely organized political faction and later a political party in the Parliaments of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom.
The Tory party has become “a center-left party. And every time they had to make a tough call until recently to save themselves, they’ve blinked,” Bannon said.
Drawing historical parallels, Bannon compared modern conservatives to those in 1940 who were hesitant to confront Hitler. He argued that the failure to address immigration issues has been a significant betrayal by conservative parties.
Bannon also referenced the French Revolution and the Russian Revolution, suggesting that significant political change often requires a small, dedicated group willing to act ruthlessly. He warned that without such resolve, conservative parties are doomed to fail.
Bannon stressed the importance of grassroots movements in taking control of political parties. He praised the efforts of populist nationalist movements in Europe and the US, citing the takeover of the Republican Party by grassroots activists as a model for others to follow.
“Look at the arc of where we’ve come, particularly in taking over the Republican Party: firing McCarthy—the first time a Speaker of the House has ever been fired in the history of the Republic—getting rid of Mitch McConnell and throwing out the RNC.
“We’ve reached new levels because we’ve taken over the grassroots. We have a true populist-nationalist movement, and we have a leader in President Trump, who is as close to a populist and economic nationalist as you’re going to get in today’s environment. The Conservatives have done the exact opposite. I mean, the Conservatives are a perfect example of a Tory Party,” said Bannon.
Edginton, in a profound reflection on conservatism’s challenges, questions the long-held belief that the 1960s alone marked the beginning of a cultural decline.
“Many Conservatives today, in Britain and in America, blame the 1960s as an era as to why there has been particularly a cultural decline from a conservative perspective, socially conservative perspective, whether it comes to sexual revolution or civil rights,” Edginton asked.
Yet, Bannon extends this timeline further back, marking the post-World War era and the assassination of prominent figures like JFK, Bobby Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., and Malcolm X as the true catalysts. He points to these assassinations, particularly JFK’s, which he controversially asserts involved CIA-led regime change tactics, as the moment the Western cultural fabric began to unravel, leading to the Vietnam War and civil unrest across the globe.
But Bannon doesn’t just stop at identifying historical moments; he charges today’s conservative leaders with inertia. In a fiery critique, he accuses them of failing to act decisively, resorting instead to intellectual exercises like drafting white papers and attending conferences.
Bannon: “You know why they did nothing? Because it’s too f—king hard. They’re gutless. The reason this country, and the West in general, is in the shape it’s in is because the Conservatives, who talked a good game about doing better, didn’t have the fortitude to sit there, fight, and say no.
And this is why you have moms going to school boards to throw out pornography. The reason we’re winning in the United States is that we’re not depending on a conservative elite who are gutless and feckless.
We’re depending on mothers and fathers and school boards. We’re depending on working-class people taking their extra time to go to precinct strategy because they said, “Hey, we’re prepared to stand and fight and not let our country be taken.” And that’s what’s important. Everything else is just conversation. You have to have the political will and the muscle to sit there and say, “They can call me a racist, a nativist, a xenophobe, a sexist, a homophobe—all of it.” When they resort to name-calling, that means they’ve lost the argument, and we’re winning.
You’ve got to draw that, you’ve got to lance the boil and draw that pus out of the system. And the Conservatives aren’t prepared to do that. They’ll curl up in the fetal position because they’re not going to be acceptable with the clubs. You have to get over it.
You have to understand we’re unclubbable, and we’re f—king proud of it, okay? And we’re going to save our country. Eventually, leaders will step up in England and come to the forefront and save the United Kingdom.”
WATCH:
‘The reason we’re winning in the United States, is we’re not depending on a conservative elite who are gutless and feckless!’
Steve Bannon accuses conservative leaders of ‘not having the f*cking balls’ to stop ‘the cultural collapse of the West’. pic.twitter.com/0mtMXG2zBD
— GBN America (@GBNAmerica) May 25, 2024
You can watch the full hour-long interview below:
The post MUST-SEE: Steve Bannon Criticizes Conservative Elites for Lacking the Courage to Prevent Western Cultural Collapse — Advocates for Populist Nationalism appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
