Steve Bannon is secretly plotting a sensational run for president in 2028 ... and he's already knifing his likely rival: 'I created him'
The campaign would divide the Make America Great Again movement Bannon helped build by setting up a herculean battle with Vice President JD Vance, who is all but certain to launch his own 2028 candidacy, potentially with Donald Trump's blessing.
A Bannon-Vance primary would trigger an explosive civil war within Trump's populist movement, pitting its original architect against its institutional inheritor.
Sources close to Steve Bannon and Trump have told Daily Mail the 71-year-old War Room host has begun soliciting political advice.
One source in Bannon's inner circle told the Daily Mail that the former strategist has privately ridiculed the prospect of Vance at the top of the ticket.
'Love him… but Vance is not tough enough to run in 2028,' the source said Bannon has conveyed to multiple people in his circles.
Bannon declined to comment to the Daily Mail while a spokesperson for Vance did not respond to a Daily Mail request for comment.
The seeds of Bannon's potential run emerges just days after Trump said Vance would likely be the favorite to succeed him.
One Republican consultant said while Bannon has long entertained aspirations to run for president, his specific plan remains in the contemplative stage.
Bannon is at the tip of the intellectual spear of the MAGA movement and a savvy media operator with an influential 'War Room' show who has previously teased running for president.
In an interview with Politico in March, Bannon told reporters: 'I don't think like a politician… all I do is back President Trump and try to move the populist agenda and the America First agenda.'
Bannon said the question of running for office was 'too absurd' when asked why he would not completely rule out being a White House candidate.
At the CPAC conference in February, conservative attendees chose Vance as the top contender for president with 61 percent of the vote - but Bannon was second with a notable 12 percent.
Both GOP sources tell the Daily Mail Bannon was crucial to helping Vance in a crowded primary race for U.S. Senate in Ohio by assisting him with nailing down a 'MAGA' identity.
One source described Bannon as having 'pushed and propped him up' to fit the role of vice president.
'He created his image,' the first source claimed.
Bannon has repeatedly floated the unconstitutional idea that Trump should campaign for a third term, citing a vaguary of 'options' when pressed for details.
Trump has said as recently as this week he probably won't attempt to push the two-term limit even though he's tempted to.
While Bannon deliberates plans on running for president, he also finds himself seated at the center of another volatile story: the Jeffrey Epstein files.
Bannon claims to have about 15 hours of never-released videotape footage of Epstein that was shot in 2019 before his death.
The videos were shot as part of a documentary to repair Epstein's reputation, according to his brother.
If he doesn't release the video, the Republican source in Bannon's inner circle says he could possibly save and deploy them for some sort of leverage in 2028.
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