Steve Bannon’s Stance on Iran: A Call for Caution Amidst Calls for Regime Change
On Monday, Steve Bannon, a prominent figure in the MAGA movement and a longtime ally of former President Donald Trump, voiced his skepticism regarding the prospect of the U.S. advocating for regime change in Iran. This idea was recently floated by Trump himself, who suggested a bold approach over the weekend. Bannon reiterated his commitment to the “America first” philosophy, emphasizing the importance of steering clear of foreign entanglements.
During an episode of his podcast, “Bannon’s War Room,” Bannon commended Trump’s recent military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities. However, he expressed reservations about the “regime change narrative,” critiquing the Pentagon’s messaging following the strike. Bannon urged Israel to take the lead in addressing the situation without U.S. involvement, stating, “finish what you started.”
In a social media post on Sunday evening, Trump indicated a willingness to consider regime change in Iran, contradicting several senior administration officials who had earlier asserted that such a goal was not on the table. “It’s not politically correct to use the term ‘Regime Change,’ but if the current Iranian Regime is unable to MAKE IRAN GREAT AGAIN, why wouldn’t there be a Regime change??? MIGA!!!” Trump proclaimed on Truth Social.
This conflict has exposed a division within the Republican Party, highlighting the rift between interventionists like Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and isolationists like Bannon, who caution against entering an open-ended military conflict in the Middle East.
Bannon congratulated Trump on the “precision, logistics, bravery, valor, boldness” displayed in the Iran strike but warned that ambiguity regarding the operation’s success could serve as a rationale for deploying U.S. military personnel to Iran. “Now it’s all about, ‘Hey, we don’t know where the material is,’” he remarked, referring to Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium. “What’s that going to lead us to, folks? ‘Hey, do we need the 75th Ranger Battalion to go in and find it?’ Oh, it’s coming. It’s coming.”
While Trump has touted the strike as “very successful,” Pentagon officials cautioned on Sunday that it remains too early to ascertain whether Iran still possesses nuclear capabilities or how much of its enriched uranium was destroyed.
Bannon expressed concern that the strike could be seen as a “psy-op,” fearing that the Trump administration’s stated objective of preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon might be mere “cosplay,” potentially leading to deeper U.S. involvement in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran. “Is this because the ultimate goal is regime change? And if that’s fine, Israelis, have at it,” he said. “If you want regime change, go for it, baby. Just no participation by the United States government.”
Furthermore, Bannon conveyed disappointment in Pentagon leadership for missing the chance to “drive the narrative” surrounding the strikes by failing to present an initial damage assessment after the attack. “We needed to see some grainy photographs,” he lamented. “I understand DOD that you don’t have the battle damage assessment. That’s going to take three or four weeks, as you said, but there’s enough there to kind of take and start to drive the narrative. We lost that opportunity.”
