Upstart Republicans shun Bannon for Trump
‘This has always been’ about president, they say
WASHINGTON – “Outsider” candidates in midterm congressional races sided with President Trump in his public spat with former adviser Steve Bannon, and Bannon’s biggest financial backer publicly severed ties with him.
Wealthy conservative Rebekah Mercer, whose family bankrolled several Bannon projects, including Breitbart News, said she has not spoken to Bannon in months.
“I support President Trump and the platform upon which he was elected,” Mercer said in a statement first provided to The Washington Post. “My family and I have not communicated with Steve Bannon in many months and have provided no financial support to his political agenda, nor do we support his recent actions and statements.”
The loss of Mercer’s financial support could imperil Bannon’s crusade against the Republican establishment and signal jeopardy for his position at Breitbart, where Mercer has an ownership stake.
Insurgent candidates who had previously courted Bannon’s support minimized his role in their campaigns after excerpts of interviews with the head of Breitbart News were published by The Guardian on Wednesday.
In the interviews, from a forthcoming book, Bannon — who worked as the CEO of Trump’s campaign and was a top ad- viser until August — said a meeting in 2016 between Trump campaign officials, including Donald Trump Jr., and a Russian lawyer was “treasonous” and “unpatriotic.”
Michael Grimm, a former congressman who went to prison for tax evasion and is running for his old seat against the sitting Republican, met with Bannon in October and posted a photo with him captioned “Game on! #MAGA.” Wednesday night, he said the statements made by Bannon “are baseless attacks against the president’s family, beyond disturbing, and I fully support our commander in chief.”
Kelli Ward, who is running for an open Senate seat in Arizona, appeared with Bannon at a campaign event in October. After interview excerpts were published, Ward’s campaign said his was “only one of many high-profile endorsements” she has received.
Trump has gone on the offensive against Bannon and Michael Wolff, author of Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House. Thursday, the president’s lawyer sent a cease-and-desist letter to Wolff and his publisher, claiming the book contains defamatory information and should not be published.
“I would argue that it’s never been about Bannon,” Blaine Kelly, a spokesman for the Ohio Republican Party said. “This has always been about President Trump. ... President Trump won Ohio by 8 points, not Steve Bannon.”
“It’s a shocking turn of events for Bannon,” said Brent Bozell, a conservative activist who runs the Media Research Center. Bannon “just killed himself ” by turning on Trump, he said.