Steve Bannon, the White House chief strategist who reportedly loves a gunfight, may be the wild card the West Wing has to watch out for, amidst reports that he's losing his influence with President Donald Trump.
Now there are questions if Bannon would turn that gun on the president — metaphorically speaking, of course — if and when he ultimately gets the boot from the administration.
Politico reported on Friday that many Trump and Bannon allies have considered the potential revenge factor if the White House chief strategist is fired.
Rep. Steve King, one of Trump's most loyal supporters in Congress, refused to speak to Politico about Bannon's hypothetical vengeance because he feared that weighing in would harm the already "volatile" situation.
“Even comments by me could cause a lot of problems,” King said. “It’s better for the country if my voice isn’t in it.”
King did acknowledge to Politico that if he did make a comment on record, the White House could wind up thinking twice about firing Bannon.
One anonymous Bannon ally suggested to Politico that Bannon definitely has the higher ground in this standoff.
“It’s not like it’s definitely going to be ‘Apocalypse Now,’ but it could be, and that’s the point,” the source told Politico. “Do you really want to gamble with this in your first 100 days?”
Dana Loesch, a conservative radio host who sued Breitbart News after leaving the website in 2012 because Bannon allegedly plotted to "sabotage" her career, told Politico that the White House chief strategist will always have his former media outlet to defend him.
“The hit pieces on Breitbart will increase, for sure,” she said.
Mike Cernovich, the alt-right commentator and conspiracy theorist, told Politico that Bannon could leak more salacious stories to the tabloids.
“There’s sex scandals people are sitting on,” Cernovich said. “All the gossip and drama and stuff that might be a little more personal is going to get leaked.”
One former Breitbart employee told Politico that Bannon's dream scenario would entail the administration falling apart after his departure, paving the way for a glorious, populous return.
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