The Indo Daily: Steve Bannon, Trump’s MAGA mastermind – will he still wield power in prison?

The long-time ally – and occasional foe – of Donald Trump previously acted as the former US president’s right-hand man and chief orchestrator of his successful election campaign.

This week, the notoriously outspoken Bannon was handed a four-month jail sentence following charges of defying a subpoena into the investigation of the 2021 assault on Capitol Hill.

Surrendering himself on Monday, Bannon declared that he was “proud” to go to prison.

The former Navy officer-turned-investment banker rose to prominence as a leading figure in right-wing media throughout the 2000s, before eventually aligning himself with Trump and taking up his formal role in the White House.

The move wasn’t without controversy, as a fallout between the two led Trump to label his one-time close confidant “Sloppy Steve” before dismissing him from his cabinet.

No stranger to headlines, Bannon has been described as one of this century’s most notable far-right agitators, forging ties with other controversial politicians such as French presidential hopeful Marine Le Pen and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage.

On this episode of The Indo Daily, host Rory Tevlin is joined by New York-based reporter and news director of WSHU Public Radio, Terry Sheridan. They look at Bannon’s mystifying rise to power and ask whether he might yield more influence inside prison than outside.