I’m now beginning to edge towards the belief that former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon may be actually attempting to sabotage President Trump.

Bannon spoke on Sunday at a rally hosted by Phyllis Schlafly Eagles and claimed to have left the White House, in order to work for Trump from the outside, as a “wingman.”

Yeah. He left, rather than he was “helped” out the door.

To a crowd of about 400, Bannon actually said the Democrats weren’t the problem. The problem was the “Republican establishment” and they were the ones that needed to be beat.

“It’s not the Democrats, we’ll get to them and we’ll beat them, like we beat Hillary Clinton,” Bannon said. “But the first thing you’ve got to get through is a corrupt and incompetent Republican establishment,” he told the crowd to cheers.

Republicans in Congress have failed to support Trump’s “populist, nationalist, conservative” message and ideas, Bannon said.

“They’re not conservatives. They’re liberals, and that is what we’ve got to fight every day,” he said.

Let’s just mull this over.

They may not be conservative (and I’m assuming he’s talking about the McCains, McConnells, Grahams, et al.), but neither is Trump.

Isn’t it Trump who rolled over on his core campaign promise, in order to work with Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi?

Isn’t it Trump who has given his full support to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s pick, Luther Strange, to take over Jeff Sessions’ vacant Senate seat?

And whether conservative or not, it is the establishment Republicans who would cover for Trump, in the event some issue of impeachment were to arise.

Keep telling voters how evil Trump’s own party is and painting the image of scores to be settled, to the point that Trump’s base feels obligated to allow them to be voted out, handing those seats over to Democrats, and watch how fast the love affair between Trump, Chuck, and Nancy ends.

Bannon did go on to promote Judge Roy Moore, in opposition of Trump’s pick, Luther Strange, saying Moore’s opponents can’t take the “righteousness” people like Judge Moore represent.

Bannon also received an award from the group, although the proceedings were closed to the public.

I have to wonder what that was about.

Schlafly, of suburban St. Louis, was the driving force behind defeat of the pro-feminist Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970s. Her endorsement of Trump several months before her death was part of the internal organizational strife that led Phyllis Schlafly Eagles to break away from Eagle Forum. Some other members of the Eagle Forum board supported other Republican presidential candidates in 2016.

These Trump-inspired divisions within the movement are telling. Steve Bannon is the master of creating division and the “Us versus Them” mentality, no matter how unhelpful.

So keep pushing against the party, Bannon. I promise, the overtures being made to Trump now do not reflect the plans Democrats have for him, should they ever regain the majority.