What liberals can learn from Stephen Bannon's dad

Marty Bannon saw his life savings decimated by the crash of 2008

Steve Bannon at the Presidential Inauguration.
(Image credit: WIN MCNAMEE/AFP/Getty Images)

For liberals in the era of President Trump, there is no greater bête noire than Stephen Bannon. Before he became Trump's chief strategic adviser, Bannon used to run the media site Breitbart, which unapologetically dabbled in toxic cultural reaction. His blend of economic populism and white nationalism links the Trump administration to the rising right-wing movements in Europe.

But Bannon's personal history may also be a mirror in which liberals must confront their own failures.

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Jeff Spross

Jeff Spross was the economics and business correspondent at TheWeek.com. He was previously a reporter at ThinkProgress.