CAMP HILL - Hours after he was fired from CNN, Jeffrey Lord started his "no apologies tour."

One of the first people to cheer him on was Steve Bannon, the chief strategist to President Donald Trump.

Lord, who landed his CNN role for his bold and frequent support of the real estate mogul who became the Republican nominee, took the call in his mother's Camp Hill living room.

"It's Stephen K. Bannon," Lord said, reading the caller ID. "I have to take this."

Bannon's was one of numerous calls Thursday night, but Lord was noticeably more confident after he said the White House adviser encouraged him to keep fighting.

"Absolutely," Lord said, moving from the living room to his home office.

Lord gave a quick series of answers to Bannon, ultimately noting there was a reporter in the house and he needed some time to consider his options before strategizing.

Bannon, Lord and Trump have previously expressed mutual admiration, and Lord was given special seating and access during the president's visits to central Pennsylvania.

When asked what Bannon said to him, Lord wouldn't comment.

When asked if the White House chief strategist wanted to strategize about Lord's next steps, amid escalating international tension with North Korea, Lord wouldn't comment.

But the central Pennsylvania politico did note that a situation like North Korea threatening nuclear war is a "major league" problem and his ousting from CNN is only important because it's a First Amendment issue.

Lord said he's been fighting against liberal activists he describes as fascists, especially Media Matters and its President Angelo Carusone.

After one of Lord's recent American Spectator columns about Media Matters had a misspelling in the headline, Carusone called him out on Twitter.

Lord's response was only two words, but they were enough to get him fired: "Seig Heil!"

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The CNN commentator was almost in New York, due to appear on a show, when he said he got a call from Rebecca Kutler, vice president of content development and contributors for the network.

"She said the network was severing its connection with me," Lord said.

In a story on its website Thursday afternoon, CNN said, "Nazi salutes are indefensible. Jeffrey Lord is no longer with the network."

Thursday afternoon wasn't the first time Lord used the Nazi salute. In an American Spectator column Wednesday, Lord said "Media Matters Fascists" are rewriting the First Amendment to essentially have speech that's preapproved by the "Ministry of Popular Culture."

"The American Spectator has been unable to confirm reports that the original draft of this Media Matters revision ended with the words: "Seig Heil!" Lord wrote in the column.

Even after losing the job that brought him national attention and made it difficult for him to get through local grocery stores without being stopped, Lord said he has no regrets about what he considers a sarcastic remark making fun of fascists.

"You're not supposed to make fun of Nazis? I don't think so," Lord said. "I do not ever intend to be quiet. If I had to do it all over again, I would."

He sees his abrupt end at CNN as an opportunity for a new beginning. A major publisher is interested in his book proposal on the president, the media is wide with a lot of room for his firebrand and his phone barely stopped ringing. By 9 p.m. Thursday, Lord already had numerous interviews scheduled for Friday morning across the country.

Lord didn't leave with animosity toward his former colleagues at CNN, but he made it clear he had a "serious disagreement" with the network's decision to cut ties.

"I love the people of CNN, but you cannot give in to this kind of thing," Lord said, referring to Carusone calling for his termination and Sean Hannity's of FOX News. "The notion that you cannot make fun of people who use Nazi tactics - they're caving to the Nazi tactics."

Lord's overarching belief is that liberal activists are trying to restrict free speech by calling for the removal of commentators and hosts who don't agree with them.

"It's a matter of principle," Lord said of his fight. "The idea that people who use Nazi fascist tactics should be left alone to fly their trade is unacceptable."

Media Matters has an ad campaign against Hannity, and Lord claims the group's mission is "to shut down speech they don't like."

Lord said Carusone was playing a "fascist game" by targeting Hannity.

"This is America, Angelo," Lord said in the American Spectator column. "Not Fascist Italy, Nazi Germany or Communist Russia."

Regardless of the dictator-run country Lord was accusing his foe of being from, the former CNN commentator found his "real life" on the couch with his ailing 98-year-old mother, Kit, who lives with dementia.

In a previous interview with PennLive, Lord said he would easily give up any public attention to have her know him again. While Lord is recognized by strangers on the street, Kit often forgets who he is or confuses him with a boy she calls "John."

"I'd trade it in an instant just to have her know me again," Lord said last year. "When you're changing Depends every day, you gain perspective about what counts in life and what doesn't. One is reality, the other is just politics."

Lord was back to that reality Thursday night - though he never really left. Throughout his busy CNN schedule, he always took care of his mom.

Now, he recognizes he will have more time to do that. Kit, who did not know CNN severed ties, seemed to sense it too. She hugged her son on the couch as she said, "Please don't ever leave me again."

Lord hugged her in response, with his eyes fighting off a tough day and his will fighting for his deeply held convictions.

"I'm going to stand up for people," Lord said. "There's a serious problem in this country. The First Amendment is under assault. This is the first day of my no apology tour."