In 1980 , Bannon was deployed to the Persian Gulf to assist with Operation Eagle Claw during the Iran hostage crisis . The mission 's failure marked a turning point in his political world-view from largely apolitical to strongly Reaganite , which was further reinforced by the September 11 attacks . Bannon has stated , " I was n't political until I got into the service and saw how badly Jimmy Carter fucked things up . I became a huge Reagan admirer . Still am . But what turned me against the whole establishment was coming back from running companies in Asia in 2008 and seeing that Bush had fucked up as badly as Carter . The whole country was a disaster . " Upon his departure he was ranked as a lieutenant ( O-3 )
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
Steve Bannon