Bannon bound for New Mexico to stump for candidate Rich
Republican candidate for Senate hopes to drum up support with visit to Roswell
Stephen Bannon, the controversial former aide to President Donald Trump, is headed to New Mexico.
Bannon will appear alongside Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mick Rich on Thursday evening in Roswell, according to Rich’s campaign.
Trump’s former chief strategist, Bannon has backed candidates who will be allies of the president.
“Mick is the only candidate in the race that wants to work with the president,” said Nathan James, a spokesman for the Rich campaign.
The announcement comes as Rich not only challenges incumbent Democrat Martin Heinrich but also faces Libertarian Gary Johnson, who is appealing to independents and some Republicans, leaving Rich to consolidate support in the GOP.
Organized by Bannon’s group, Citizens of the American Republic, the event from 4 to 7 p.m. at The Hi-Q Venue will be free and open to the public. Bannon will screen a film, Trump @War, and discuss the future of the Republican Party, the Roswell Daily Record reported.
Democrats blasted the news, calling Bannon a white supremacist — a label he rejects but has trailed him for his views on immigration and other issues.
“New Mexicans don’t just celebrate our diversity; we believe it is a driving force of what makes our state unique,” said state Democratic Party Chairwoman Marg Elliston.
“Let me be clear: There is no place for Steve Bannon or his hatred in New Mexico,” she added.
Meanwhile, Johnson’s campaign noted that Bannon’s views are controversial even among Republicans.
“He’s attacked the state’s largest faith, the Catholic Church, for its views toward immigrants, and thinks separating children from their parents at the border is good policy,” spokesman Joe Hunter told New Mexico Political Report.
“There are a lot of Republicans in New Mexico who aren’t on board with those kinds of beliefs,” Hunter said.
“We can only hope that spending a little time in the state might temper his views,” he said.
Bannon has been a divisive figure for years. The head of the Anti-Defamation League once called the website Bannon runs, Breitbart News, “a looseknit group of white nationalists and unabashed anti-Semites and racists.”
Under his leadership of the site, the group said, Breitbart “emerged as the leading source for the extreme views of a vocal minority who peddle bigotry and hate.”