Former presidential adviser Steve Bannon has stepped down as executive chairman of Breitbart News, after a new book revealed comments he made that were critical of the president and his family.
Breitbart, a right-wing populist website that often offers flattery of the Trump administration, announced the news on Tuesday, saying it would work with Bannon to ensure a “smooth and orderly transition.”
“I’m proud of what the Breitbart team has accomplished in so short a period of time in building out a world-class news platform,” Bannon said in a statement on the site.
“Steve is a valued part of our legacy, and we will always be grateful for his contributions, and what he has helped us to accomplish,” Breitbart CEO Larry Solov said in a statement.
Bannon, who left his White House post as the president’s chief strategist in August to return to his position at Breitbart, had a very public falling out with President Trump after he was quoted in a new book criticizing members of Trump’s family and inner circle.
In Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, by Michael Wolff, Bannon slammed the president’s son, Donald Trump, Jr., son-in-law Jared Kushner, and former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort for meeting with a Russian lawyer during the campaign.
Bannon reportedly called the decision to take the meeting “treasonous” and “unpatriotic.”
After the comments came to light, Trump severed all ties with Bannon, blasting him in a statement and saying that Bannon — long thought to be the architect behind the Trump campaign’s appeals to the alt-right and to the politics of racial and economic resentment — deserved no credit for helping Trump win the presidency.
“Steve Bannon has nothing to do with me or my presidency,” Trump said in that statement. “When he was fired, he not only lost his job, he lost his mind. Steve was a staffer who worked for me after I had already won the nomination by defeating seventeen candidates, often described as the most talented field ever assembled in the Republican Party.”
Fox News notes that White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders was asked last week if Breitbart should sever ties with Bannon, to which she responded: “I certainly think it’s something they should consider and look at.”
Bannon’s departure from Breitbart leaves him temporarily without a major media platform from which to lodge a populist campaign. When he initially left his post in the Trump administration, Bannon had said he felt he could be more effective in fighting for the president’s political agenda — a campaign that would essentially declare all-out war against the media, corporate America, and the Washington political establishment — outside of the White House.
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were upstaged by a gaggle of drag queens at the Kennedy Center Opera House during a performance of the French Revolution-set hit musical Les Misérables on Wednesday, June 11.
The couple’s appearance -- Trump’s first of the term at the historic venue -- coincided with a special fundraising night aimed at supporting the reportedly financially struggling arts institution.
According to the The Washington Post, ticket sales have slumped following Trump’s takeover of the storied institution, long considered a cornerstone of D.C.’s theater scene. Subscriptions for the upcoming season are down by $1.6 million -- roughly 36% -- compared to last year.
A transgender athlete in California won two golds and a silver medal at the CIF State Track & Field Championships last weekend, but officially "tied" with other athletes due to a specialized scoring system instituted just ahead of the state meet.
AB Hernandez, a transgender girl who is a junior at Jurupa Valley High School in Riverside, California, placed first in the girls' high jump and triple jump competitions, and second in the girls' long jump competition.
Hernandez's participation sparked controversy and staunch opposition from some parents and bystanders, especially after President Donald Trump threatened to permanently withhold federal money from California if transgender athletes -- specifically Hernandez, although he did not refer to her by name -- were allowed to compete in female events.
A Democratic-led coalition has written a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio demanding access to Andry José Hernández Romero, a gay Venezuelan national who was in the process of seeking asylum when he was forcibly deported to El Salvador and imprisoned at a controversial maximum-security prison in that country.
Leading the charge on the letter are U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) and U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), along with U.S. Reps. Mark Takano (D-Calif.), Yassamin Ansari (D-Ariz.), Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), Maxine Dexter (D-Ore.), and Seth Magaziner (D-R.I.).
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
You must be logged in to post a comment.