MyPillow CEO and noted conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell was swiftly dragged after he said he is "100% running" to be the head of the Republican National Committee (RNC) and hopes to unseat current RNC chair Ronna McDaniel.
During a discussion with Steve Bannon—the White nationalist who served as former Republican President Donald Trump's chief strategist until a rather contentious falling out—Lindell claimed one of the RNC's "big donors" suggested that "everybody" wants to see him run the political committee.
Lindell said he had been doing his “due diligence the past few days,” meeting with donors and state leaders to highlight future plans for the committee. However, he added he had not spoken with Trump or sought his blessing, preferring this be "[Lindell's] decision."
You can hear what Lindell said in the video below.
\u201cLindell tells Bannon today that he\u2019s spoken with big donors and state leaders about his potential challenge to Ronna McDaniel: \u201cThe RNC\u2019s a mess. The donors are upset, All the people I talked to within the organization are upset, some of them are quitting. It needs to be fixed.\u201d\u201d— Ron Filipkowski \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6 (@Ron Filipkowski \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6) 1669478673
Lindell said:
"I've been doing my due diligence the last few days. The RNC is such a big institution and it's so important and it's failed us."
"I've talked to big donors now in the last three days. I've talked to many of the state leads [sic] and everyone of them says, 'We've gotta have a different leader, a different input to get a different output.'"
"I'm learning so much about it and like, I'd do anything. I'm going to do my due diligence and then I'm going to say, 'Hey, where are the holes here and can I be that great person to fill that?'"
"When you look at the RNC like a business, they have failed us. And you've got to look at why they have failed. You've got 2018, 2020, 2022... Now, if you're CEO of any other business, you get replaced."
"The RNC's a mess. The donors are upset, they want results. All the people I've talked to within the organization, they are upset because some of them are quitting, some of them are glad they're turned out."
"It needs to be fixed and I believe it can be, will be fixed."
Lindell has no experience holding political office.
He has, however, previously advised Trump's campaign and become the subject of considerable derision for taking a more active role in supporting and financing Trump's attempts to overturn the 2020 general election result by spreading disproven conspiracy theories about widespread electoral fraud.
As far as social media users were concerned, a successful Lindell candidacy would only make matters worse for the RNC at a time when the GOP is largely split over allegiance to Trumpist politics and the party's disappoining midterm election performance, which failed to bring about the "red wave" Republican pollsters and legislators were counting on.
Lindell was soundly mocked as a result.
\u201cGo Mike. Nobody has as much potential as you to blow up the RNC.\u201d— Joseph Barri (@Joseph Barri) 1669498959
\u201cDeal of the day \u27a1\ufe0f BOGO: If the RNC buys Mike Lindell's logic, they get a MyPillow and a lunatic CEO, of equal or lessor value, FREE of charge. #RNC #MikeLindell\u201d— Jeff Dunn (@Jeff Dunn) 1669497742
\u201cMr. Fixing, the world should sleep better tonight.\u201d— Carl Faul (@Carl Faul) 1669511596
\u201cGo, go #Lindell, the mighty moron who could. If anyone can lead the #RNC better than @GOPChairwoman, it's you.\u201d— Lina Record (@Lina Record) 1669557461
\u201cWhat a joke!! He can\u2019t even fix his life or his business but wants to fix the RNC \ud83d\ude21\ud83d\ude21\u201d— Christopher Roe (@Christopher Roe) 1669490758
\u201cNo sweat. Give all the big donors pillows, and they'll fall right in line.\u201d— Doc Greeves (@Doc Greeves) 1669492024
\u201cCan\u2019t wait for crazy nutso Lindell to take over the RNC and destroy what\u2019s left of it. \ud83e\udd17\u201d— Patriotic Democrat: Never Forget January 6th. (@Patriotic Democrat: Never Forget January 6th.) 1669496250
\u201cThis is so sexciting to watch the Republican civil war.....we are watching the snake bite its own tail.\u201d— Francois Gagn\u00e9 (@Francois Gagn\u00e9) 1669496311
\u201cRight off the top of my head, I can think of a far better use for one of this knucklehead's bad pillows, than for sleeping on them!\n\nBtw, where's that "proof" you threatened to show everyone about election corruption - with a date that kept moving forward - yet never occurred?!\u201d— Steve Ross (@Steve Ross) 1669503523
The bumbling Lindell made headlines in September after he complained that agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) seized his phone while he was in the drive-thru of a Hardee’s restaurant.
Lindell's phone was seized in connection with a 2021 breach of voting machines in Mesa County, Colorado, committed by former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters, who is facing felony charges for alleged tampering after sensitive voter machine data she leaked was presented at Lindell's "Cyber Symposium."
Lindell had billed the "Symposium" as a legitimate arena in which he would unveil definitive proof that the 2020 election was stolen but he ultimately failed to produce any evidence of fraud.
