Steve Bannon Discussed 'Taking Down' Pope Francis With Epstein: DOJ Files

Steve Bannon messaged Jeffrey Epstein in June 2019 stating “Will take down [Pope] Francis,” according to Department of Justice files released under the Epstein Transparency Act, as reported by The Independent.¹ In the same exchange, Bannon wrote: “The Clintons, Xi, Francis, EU — come on, brother.”²

The communication took place roughly one month before Epstein’s July 2019 arrest on federal sex trafficking charges in New York. CNN, which also reviewed the messages, reported that the exchange came years after Epstein’s 2008 conviction for child sex offenses in Florida.²

What the Messages Show

In the released files, Bannon referenced “In the Closet of the Vatican,” a 2019 book by French journalist Frederic Martel that detailed allegations of secrecy and hypocrisy at the highest levels of the Catholic Church. Bannon appeared to propose that Epstein serve as executive producer of a film adaptation, writing: “You are now exec producer of ‘ITCOTV’ (In the closet of the Vatican).“²

It is unclear how serious the proposal was. In the exchange, Epstein did not respond to the offer and instead asked Bannon about filming Noam Chomsky, according to CNN.²

In a separate email in the DOJ files, Bannon sent Epstein an article about the Vatican’s condemnation of populist nationalism. Epstein allegedly replied: “great, they forgot to mention lucifer himself.”²

Additional messages between the two showed discussions about efforts to influence international geopolitics, including shaping European coalitions, increasing pressure on China and forging business ties in the Middle East.²

Martel told CNN that he believes Bannon wanted to “instrumentalize” the book in his broader campaign against Pope Francis.²

Bannon’s History With the Pope

Bannon served as chief strategist in the Trump White House for seven months in 2017. He previously chaired Trump’s 2016 campaign and ran Breitbart News. By June 2019, he had been out of the administration for nearly two years but remained active in conservative political circles.

Bannon had been a vocal critic of Pope Francis, whom he viewed as an opponent of his nationalist-populist “sovereigntist” vision. In a 2018 interview with The Spectator, Bannon called the pope “beneath contempt” and accused him of aligning with globalist elites.²

According to journalist Michael Wolff, Bannon was introduced to Epstein in 2017. Epstein then introduced Bannon to some of his associates.³

Bannon’s Public Silence

Bannon had been among the public figures who pushed for the release of Epstein files before the Jan. 30 document dump. Since his name surfaced in the records, he has largely avoided addressing the revelations publicly, according to CNN.³ Conservative commentator Laura Loomer called that silence “a bit hypocritical” given Bannon’s earlier calls for disclosure.³

The New York Times separately reported on the breadth of Bannon’s text exchanges with Epstein despite the financier’s well-known legal troubles.

Document Release Disputes

The released documents have drawn criticism over extensive redactions.⁴ Attorney General Pam Bondi has faced congressional questioning about decisions to withhold portions of the records.⁵

Epstein was arrested in July 2019 on charges of sex trafficking minors. He died in his Manhattan jail cell the following month while awaiting trial. A medical examiner ruled the death a suicide.

References

1. Steve Bannon Pope Francis Epstein Files - The Independent
2. Steve Bannon courted Epstein in his efforts to ‘take down’ Pope Francis - CNN
3. Steve Bannon pushed hard for the release of the Epstein files. Then he was in them - CNN
4. Trump DOJ Accused Over Epstein File Redactions
5. Bondi Grilled on Epstein Files