Harry Reid, GOP strategists slam Trump's top aide pick
Donald Trump's choice to name Stephen Bannon, his campaign's chief executive officer and the man described as turning a right-wing website into a "white ethno-nationalist propaganda mill," as his top aide in the White House has Democrats and Republicans alike speaking out.
A spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said the pick "signals that white supremacists will be represented at the highest levels in Trump's White House. It is easy to see why the KKK views Trump as their champion, when Trump appoints one of the foremost peddlers of white supremacist themes and rhetoric as his top aide."
While under his tutelage, the Breitbart website published such headlines as "Bill Kristol, Republican Spoiler, Renegade Jew," and, two weeks after the mass murder at a black church in South Carolina, "Hoist it high and proud: the confederate flag proclaims a glorious heritage." Bannon was also accused by his ex-wife of domestic violence, and telling her he didn't want to send their daughters to "school with Jews" because he "doesn't like Jews."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Republican strategist John Weaver sounded the alarm on Twitter Sunday evening, saying, "The racist, fascist extreme right is represented footsteps from the Oval Office. Be very vigilant America." Another GOP strategist, Ana Navarro, called Bannon a "white supremacist, anti-gay, anti-Semite, vindictive, scary-ass dude," and warned, "After vomiting, be afraid, America."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Political cartoons for November 1Cartoons Saturday's political cartoons include insurance premiums, early voting in NYC, and more
-
Salted caramel and chocolate tart recipeThe Week Recommends Delicious dessert can be made with any biscuits you fancy
-
Meet Ireland’s new socialist presidentIn the Spotlight Landslide victory of former barrister and ‘outsider’ Catherine Connolly could ‘mark a turning point’ in anti-establishment politics
-
Senate votes to kill Trump’s Brazil tariffSpeed Read Five Senate Republicans joined the Democrats in rebuking Trump’s import tax
-
Border Patrol gets scrutiny in court, gains power in ICESpeed Read Half of the new ICE directors are reportedly from DHS’s more aggressive Customs and Border Protection branch
-
Shutdown stalemate nears key pain pointsSpeed Read A federal employee union called for the Democrats to to stand down four weeks into the government standoff
-
Trump vows new tariffs on Canada over Reagan adspeed read The ad that offended the president has Ronald Reagan explaining why import taxes hurt the economy
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
