Steve Bannon confronted about ‘We Build the Wall’ fraud campaign at right-wing conference

Steve Bannon, once a senior adviser to Donald Trump, was confronted by a Ron DeSantis supporter who demanded to know when the far-right podcaster would pay back money he allegedly collected in a fraudulent fundraiser aimed at funding the construction of a southern border wall.

The supporter, Chris Nelson, is a known right-wing provocateur who is vocal in his support of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis's 2024 presidential run.

He posted a video of himself approaching and confronting Mr Bannon on Sunday during the Turning Point Action conference in West Palm Beach, Florida, according to Newsweek.

As Mr Nelson approaches Mr Bannon, he calls out to him and asks when he will give back the money he allegedly took for the failed "Build the Wall Fund."

"Hey Steve Bannon! When are you going to get back that money you took from the Build the Wall Fund?" Mr Nelson asks. "When are you going to give that money back?"

Mr Bannon claimed that "there's not one penny, dude."

The former Trump adviser was charged in September 2022 with money laundering allegations tied to a GoFundMe campaign claiming donations would be used to build a wall along the US-Mexico border. The construction of a wall at the southern border — paid for by Mexico — was a key promise Mr Trump made during his 2016 presidential campaign. The wall was only partially built, and Mexico did not pay for any of its construction.

Mr Bannon was also charged in a near-identical federal investigation, but Mr Trump pardoned him in January 2021 just before leaving office.

Manhattan prosecutors brought state charges — which presidential pardons do not cover — against Mr Bannon in September 2022. That trial is expected to begin in May 2024.

Mr Nelson also accused Mr Bannon of lying about Mr DeSantis, and said Andrew Brietbart — the founder of right-wing Breitbart News, which Mr Bannon took over after his death — would be embarrassed by his successor.

"Andrew Breitbart would be rolling in his grave right now to see what you're doing," he said. "Why are you lying about Ron DeSantis? Aren't you concerned that Trump does not have any ground game to win and that he has no plan to do anything differently and that Ron DeSantis has gotten victory after victory with election integrity?"

Before walking away from the confrontation, Mr Bannon said that Mr DeSantis only has "$3 million left," citing an NBC news report on the candidate's war chest.

After his confrontation with Mr Bannon, Mr Nelson claims that security at the event was trying to toss him out because he is a DeSantis supporter.

"Because if somebody's not in your little club, then you throw them out," Mr Nelson says. "You can't stand dissenting viewpoints."

Mr Bannon spoke at the conference, telling the audience that Mr Trump and his GOP allies would face years of "political warfare."

"We got a fight ahead of us," Mr Bannon said. "There's still the primary, the RNC and the donors are gonna try and [block] Trump, so we gotta get through that. The general election, and I don't have to believe Biden will be the nominee, I think they'll trade him out, but we've got nothing but a war in the general election, and then we gotta make sure they can't steal it. And by the way, that's the easy part. We've got six to eight years ahead of us of absolute political warfare."