Many were taken aback when a leading figure in the MAGA world responded to a report on Thursday suggesting he was considering a run for the 2028 GOP nomination.

According to “well-placed sources” who spoke to the Daily Mail, “War Room” podcast host Steve Bannon, who was a top political adviser to President Donald Trump for a short time during his first term, is “in the early stages of planning an audacious run for president.”

Such a bid would obviously put him in direct competition for the nomination against Vice President JD Vance, who Trump tacitly endorsed for 2028 in comments earlier this week.

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Regarding the vice president, a source told the Daily Mail that Bannon said, “Love him … but Vance is not tough enough to run in 2028.”

However, not long after the Daily Mail’s afternoon report was published, The National Pulse’s editor-in-chief, Raheem Kassam, said he contacted Bannon for a comment, noting that the former Trump adviser responded with a simple statement: “Trump 2028.”

On Tuesday, while discussing Vance as the potential MAGA heir, Trump told reporters: “Well, I think most likely. In all fairness, he’s the vice president, and I think Marco is also somebody that maybe would get together with JD in some form.

“I also think we have incredible people, some of the people on the stage right here. So it’s too early, obviously, to talk about it, but certainly he’s doing a great job. And he would be probably favored at this point,” Trump added.

Rubio’s name wasn’t widely seen as a likely addition to a 2028 MAGA ticket. Known for his hawkish foreign policy stance and past clashes with Trump, Rubio has since carved out a role in the administration as a foreign policy heavyweight. Trump’s suggestion of a Vance-Rubio alliance hints at a broader strategic vision—perhaps aiming to unite different factions of the GOP heading into the post-Trump era.

Trump also said that he would “probably not” seek a third term—something barred by the Constitution but floated occasionally by Trump and his allies, sometimes jokingly, sometimes not.

Some political analysts believe Trump’s vague talk of 2028 and repeated third-term teases are part of a calculated effort to keep the spotlight on himself and his administration—delaying the inevitable jockeying for position that comes with an open Republican field.

Still, his remarks on Vance and Rubio may have already reshaped that conversation. Rubio in July signaled his support for a prospective Vance run for the nation’s highest office.

“Well, I think JD Vance would be a great nominee. If he decides he wants to do that. I think he’s doing a great job as Vice President. He’s a close friend and I hope he intends to do it,” Rubio told Fox News’ “My View With Lara Trump.”

“It’s kind of early, you know, but being in the role that I’m in here at the Secretary of State, I really don’t play in politics,” Rubio explained. “There’s actually rules against me being involved in domestic politics.”

“I want to do this job as long as the president allows me to do it and stay in that job, which would keep me here all the way through January of 2028,” he went on. “You never know what the future holds. You never rule things out or anything.”

Rubio has also described Vance as “one of my closest friends in politics.”