Stephen Bannon is now pro-establishment

(Image credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

last updated 1 June 2018

Now that President Trump has taken charge of the Washington swamp, Stephen Bannon wants GOP hopefuls to stop trying to drain it.

Candidates running on the Republican ticket keep trying to follow in Trump's footsteps and campaign on an anti-establishment platform, reports The New York Times, but the president's former chief strategist thinks that's a losing strategy now that Trump is the establishment.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

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.

Now that that strategy has failed for fringe GOP candidates like Don Blankenship in West Virginia and Trump has somewhat embraced the swampy political strategizing, Bannon is reframing his opinions on what "taking back the government" should look like. Rebellious candidates should hold their fire on the failing status quo that overlooks the working class, says Bannon, lest it appear that their anti-establishment views are anti-Trump. Read more at The New York Times.

Explore More

Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.

Subscribe to The Week

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox