Steve Bannon is released from prison and quickly records a podcast to claim that Democrats are trying to steal the election

Steve Bannon, the former film producer and Trump strategist turned popular right-wing podcaster, was released from federal prison today after serving a four-month sentence for contempt of Congress.

Bannon was found guilty in 2022 of two counts of contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with a Jan. 6 committee subpoena. After exhausting his appeal options, he filed a complaint with a federal penitentiary in Danbury, Connecticut, in July.

After his release, Bannon gave an interview to the New York Times before recording his podcast. War room.

“The four months in federal prison didn’t break me, they gave me strength,” Bannon said on the podcast. “I am more focused and energized than I have ever been in my entire life, and just like in 2016 and 2020, I can see exactly what is going on here and what we must do to defeat it.”

Bannon described himself as a “political prisoner” and blamed Nancy Pelosi for his prosecution. After he refused to comply with the subpoena, the House of Representatives voted to forward a contempt of Congress recommendation to the Justice Department. He was prosecuted and convicted after a trial and sentenced in 2022.

Bannon was one of the most prominent media figures to spread Trump's baseless claim that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

Today, Bannon encouraged podcast listeners to “destroy” Democrats at the ballot box next week, telling them: “We have to take this beyond their ability to steal it.”

He also warned listeners about Democrats' legal challenges after the Nov. 5 election, saying, “Every day after the evening of Nov. 5 will be Stalingrad.”

“If they can’t take it away from Trump, if they can’t appease him immediately, they want to at least delegitimize his victory,” Bannon said.