Is Steve Bannon’s Ouster From National Security Council A Win For Jared Kushner?
Trump campaign CEO Stephen Bannon, the former chairman of Breitbart News. Image by Getty Images
President Trump on Wednesday yanked his chief strategist, Steve Bannon, off the National Security Council in a possible victory for rival aide Jared Kushner.
Bannon’s removal from the NSC, which includes senior members of Trump’s foreign policy team, was seen by some as a boost to national security adviser H.R. McMaster, who officials said has struggled to work together with Bannon.
It also might signal that moderates within the administration, including Kushner and chief of staff Reince Preibus, may be making headway in sidelining the former Breitbart News head and unapologetic white nationalist.
Because he is a political adviser with no experience handling sensitive matters like foreign intelligence and threats to the homeland, Bannon’s appointment as a principal to the NSC rankled within the national security establishment when it was announced in January. While Bannon was elevated to a principal, the attendance of of the head of national intelligence and the military’s joint chiefs of staff chairman was changed to optional.
The White House at the time defended its move, asserting that Bannon’s service in the Navy and familiarity with “geopolitical affairs” qualified him for the position.—With Reuters
Contact Daniel J. Solomon at [email protected] or on Twitter @DanielJSolomon
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
