Steve Bannon Rocketed to Power, Now Is Charged in Border Wall ScamSteve Bannon, the former White House Chief Strategist, has been indicted for his involvement in a scheme to defraud hundreds of thousands of donors who contributed to We Build the Wall, an online campaign to raise private funds for the construction of a barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border. Bannon, who was arrested on August 20, 2020, is accused of pocketing money from the campaign for personal expenses, including a luxury yacht.Bannon, who rose to power as the CEO of Breitbart News and as the architect of Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, was the face of We Build the Wall, a non-profit organization that promised to build a "wall" along the U.S. southern border using private funds. The campaign, which was launched in December 2018, raised more than $25 million from donors across the country.But according to the indictment, Bannon and three other defendants—Brian Kolfage, Andrew Badolato, and Timothy Shea—used the campaign to raise money for their own personal expenses, in violation of the campaign's stated purpose. The indictment alleges that the defendants created a sham non-profit organization, used it to raise money for the campaign, and then used the money for their own personal benefit.The defendants are charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering, among other crimes. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.The indictment is a stunning fall from grace for Bannon, who was once considered one of the most powerful people in politics. But his involvement in We Build the Wall was always controversial. The campaign was criticized for promoting a xenophobic and anti-immigrant agenda, and for its dubious claims about the efficacy of a wall along the border.The campaign also raised questions about the propriety of using private funds for a government project. In 2019, the House Appropriations Committee requested information from the Trump Administration about its involvement with We Build the Wall, and the Inspector General of the Department of Defense launched an investigation into the use of military funds to build the border wall.Despite these controversies, We Build the Wall continued to raise money from donors, and even received support from the Trump Administration. In February 2019, Trump tweeted his support for the campaign, writing, "People are donating to the WALL in record numbers. It's up to $18.6 million! #BuildTheWall".But the campaign's downfall began in May 2020, when Kolfage, the founder of We Build the Wall, was arrested for his alleged role in the scam. Kolfage, a disabled veteran who had become a prominent conservative activist, was accused of using the campaign to enrich himself, including buying a boat and a new house.The indictment of Bannon and the other defendants is the latest chapter in the saga of We Build the Wall, and a reminder of the dangers of populist campaigns that promise to circumvent traditional channels of government and politics. The campaign may have promised to build a wall, but instead it became a vehicle for the greed and ego of its founders. As the indictment shows, the Wall was just a pretext for a daring fraud.
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