As I wrote previously, Bannon really is not a strategic thinker. It’s much better to build a broad, self-sustaining support network than depend upon the momentary whims of the ultra-rich:
Former White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon has reportedly lost the support of billionaire backer Rebekah Mercer after he suggested he might run for president himself.
A person close to Mercer told The Washington Post that she no longer supports Bannon. According to the report, Mercer was frustrated with Bannon’s strategy in the Alabama Senate special election and pulled her funding after he told other major conservative donors that Mercer would back Bannon in his own presidential bid.
Bannon, now head of Breitbart News, supported Alabama GOP Senate candidate Roy Moore, who was dogged by allegations of sexual misconduct, in his eventual defeat to now-Sen. Doug Jones (D) in December.
“The core constituency for Breitbart is what you would call the Trump Deplorables. That’s the audience. And if they’re asked to choose between Steve and Trump, they’re going to choose Trump. That’s clear,” a person familiar with Breitbart News’s operations told the Post.
It was unclear from the report whether Mercer, who bought a stake of Breitbart News from her father in November, will continue to back the right-wing news site. The report said she is no longer backing any future Bannon projects.
To be honest, this initial support for Milo and Bannon, followed by sudden withdrawals of that support, looks more than a little strategic itself. And seriously, the partnership was always destined to fail if a loose cannon like Bannon can cut his own supply lines with nothing more than some obviously unserious musings about his own political prospects.