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Mueller Wasn’t Interested in Bannon Until ‘Fire and Fury,’ Source Says

Donald Trump’s ex-campaign chairman and White House strategist painted a bullseye on himself after he blabbed to Michael Wolff about the Russia probe.

Steve Bannon appears to have accidentally sicced Robert Mueller on himself.

The FBI visited Bannon’s home on Jan. 9 to subpoena him, according to NBC News, and he is expected to talk with the special counsel’s team by the end of the month.

A lawyer close to Mueller’s investigation told The Daily Beast that before the release of Michael Wolff’s book Fire and Fury, the special counsel’s  team indicated zero interest in questioning President Donald Trump’s former chief strategist for their Russia probe. The team hadn’t asked to interview him, the source said.

Bannon himself told Wolff that he didn’t expect to hear from Mueller.

“I know no Russians, I don’t know nothin’ about nothin,’” he said. “I’m not being a witness. I’m not hiring a lawyer.”

Bannon also told the author that he suspected Donald Trump Jr. introduced Kremlin-linked operatives to his father during their June 2016 Trump Tower meeting. And he said he thought the Mueller investigation was “all about money-laundering.”

After the book dropped, The Daily Beast broke the news that Bannon had retained counsel and would imminently face the House intelligence committee. He spoke with the committee, generating plenty of fireworks—on Jan. 16.

A spokesperson for the special counsel declined to comment.

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Betsy SwanFormer Political Reporter

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