Remember Steve Bannon? Yeah, that crappy half-baked intellectual was one of the architects of the Donald Trump campaign that brought us … Donald Trump. Bannon was always a more unsavory character in the public’s eye because, unlike Donald Trump, Steve Bannon seemed to have an actual ideology of nihilism and disruption, whereas Donald Trump seems to just have a pathological narcissism supported on the wobbly legs of a barely three-digit IQ. Steve Bannon’s standing in the world was predicated on his influence on and proximity to Donald Trump. Unfortunately for Bannon, he is no longer in the White House. He’s not a pariah in power; he’s just mostly a pariah.
The Tampa Bay Times has the heartwarming story of a Republican Party dinner and fundraiser set for Friday in Hillsborough County, Florida. The dinner offered up special $20,000 seats next to Bannon himself! Regular VIP tickets were $1,000, and general admission was $125. According to the Times, people didn’t seem to be clamoring to watch Bannon eat, so last week they cut those prices down. In fact, they slashed them.
Last week it cut the prices to $5,000 for the 10 "chairman's table" seats with Bannon, $300 for VIP seats, and general admission at $50. Announcing the price cuts, the party said in a Facebook posting, "We want to pack the house!!!"
It turns out that 75 percent off was not enough to get people into a room to watch the grizzled ramblings of an insane person, not even the Republican faithful. According to the Times, the Hillsborough County Republican Party sent out an email:
"The Trump Anniversary Dinner with Steve Bannon this Friday will be COMPLEMENTARY TO ALL. We have a donor who will cover our expenses."
All you have to do to see Steve Bannon eat is show up in clothes and have a face.