Police were reportedly called to the Washington home of Steve Bannon, a former adviser to President Donald Trump, on Thursday in the second “swatting” prank at his rowhouse in as many months.
Authorities told The Daily Mail that fire and police responded to the home in the Capitol Hill area, but there were no injuries or shots fired.
A false report in July prompted a heavy police response in search of an armed person experiencing a mental health crisis. Mr. Bannon praised the police response to the midsummer incident, which was also described as a swatting attempt.
Swatting is a practice in which someone calls in a false emergency situation, like a shooting or hostage situation, to compel a large law enforcement response at someone’s home or a specific location. It is considered highly dangerous, traumatizing for the unsuspecting victims and a waste of public safety officers’ time.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Georgia Republican, was swatted twice last month at her Georgia home.
Mr. Bannon is a polarizing figure on the right who was a key player in Mr. Trump’s rise in 2016 with his America-first vision and hardline on illegal immigration.
He recently floated the idea of a “contingent election” to reinstate Mr. Trump amid reports that Facebook briefly limited traffic of stories about Hunter Biden’s laptop in the run-up to the 2020 election.
On his podcast, Mr. Bannon said electors in certain states couldn’t be certified, so Mr. Biden did not reach the 270-electoral vote threshold and there should be a contingent election in the House of Representatives.
“Let’s start the contingent election this week. Let’s do it,” Mr. Bannon said.
Mr. Bannon was found guilty in July of criminal contempt of Congress for failing to comply with a subpoena from the House Jan. 6 Committee, marking a significant victory for the panel. His sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 21.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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