‘There’s a Big Fight’ Going on, Says a White House Source
There’s a war in the White House, and right now it looks like Steve Bannon is losing. One of the benefits of nepotism, if you happen to be married to the President’s daughter, is you’re probably going to get the support of your father-in-law.
White House Chief Strategist and Assistant to the President Steve Bannon, who was the CEO of Donald Trump‘s presidential campaign, on Wednesday was removed from the National Security Council’s principals list. And while he retains his top level security clearances and can attend meetings as he wishes, there’s no question it’s a loss of power and prestige for the former publisher of the “alt-right” website known as Breitbart.
But the battle in the White House between Steve Bannon and his top nemesis, Jared Kushner, apparently will not end with Bannon’s so-called demotion.
Bannon “has called the president’s senior advisor and son-in-law Jared Kushner a ‘cuck’ and a ‘globalist’ during a time of high tension between the two top aides,” The Daily Beast reports in an exclusive article, citing as its source “several Trump administration officials.”Â
“Globalist†is a term typically used by nationalist, pro-Trump right-wingers against political opponents; however, the term has also come under fire for at times carrying anti-Semitic tones. (Kushner is Jewish.)
For those who don’t follow the antics of the far right frequently, “cuck,” also known as “cuckservative,” according to the LA Times, is “a portmanteau of ‘conservative’ and ‘cuckold’ used to describe Republicans who are perceived to be emasculated or ‘selling out.’ Frequently shortened to ‘cuck,’ the term has come under scrutiny for its racist implications.”
Both slurs are among the “alt-right’s” favorites.
“One official said Bannon has lately complained about Kushner trying to ‘shiv him and push him out the door’ and likened him to a fifth column in the White House,” The Daily Beast’s Asawin Suebsaeng reports.
“[Steve] recently vented to us about Jared being a ‘globalist’ and a ‘cuck’…He actually said ‘cuck,’ as in “cuckservative,’†the administration official told The Daily Beast.
“There’s a big fight [going on],†one senior official said. “It’s all about policy. There’s tension [between them] on trade, health care, immigration, taxes, [terrorism]—you name it.â€
While Bannon has called himself an economic nationalist, he not long ago bragged about Breitbart being the platform of the so-called “alt-right,” a rebranding of a wide assortment of people including neo-Nazis, white nationalists, white supremacists, anti-feminists, homophobes, racists, along with those who hold anti-Semitic and anti-Islam views.Â
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