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[John Rabbit]

Maybe he's trying to get fired because he realizes once this shitshow completely collapses he can do more damage in the private sector again.

Is this a work or a shoot? I have no idea

Jabronie cucks about to work themselves into a shoot.

 

[Kaiterra]

Is this a work or a shoot? I have no idea

 

[CassidyIzABeast]

Is this a work or a shoot? I have no idea

Bannon did the not-interview while sitting cross legged.

 

[Dopus]

Which one is the worse of these 5 presidential advisers?

Steve Bannon
Karl Rove
Dick Cheney
James Baker
Henry Kissinger

My answer is Kissinger- he double-crossed LBJ/ Hubert Humphrey to help Nixon prolong the Vietnam War resulting in quite a few American soldiers getting killed.

Kissinger. Nevermind prolonging Vietnam, the man is a war criminal.

 

[Captin Quacker]

 

[Lord_Byron28]

This is all sorts of weird. Does that mean he really DOES consider the alt-right neo nazis an expendable thing to be tossed aside? This is a pretty big departure from the white nationalist image everyone for and against him has painted him as. Can't help feeling like this is some sort of elaborate (but not necessarily smart) double agent style PR move meant to throw the media off balance or something.

My thoughts as well. Probably just hoping to confuse and distract everyone enough to not be calling for his removal.

 

[Karsticles]

This is all sorts of weird. Does that mean he really DOES consider the alt-right neo nazis an expendable thing to be tossed aside? This is a pretty big departure from the white nationalist image everyone for and against him has painted him as. Can't help feeling like this is some sort of elaborate (but not necessarily smart) double agent style PR move meant to throw the media off balance or something.

I don't see how it can be anything else. Bannon has been going on video rants about the importance of white Christian America for years. For it all to just be a facade is too incredible to believe.

 

[David H Wong]

I don't see how it can be anything else. Bannon has been going on video rants about the importance of white Christian America for years. For it all to just be a facade is too incredible to believe.

Right but doing it his way can actually get policy in place. The guys marching in the park with cardboard white power shields and tiki torches are the losers he laughs at. It's not about their political position, but their method. He doesn't want the face of nationalism to look like that, he wants it to look like smart business types in business casual attire with their sleeves rolled up, holding actual positions of power. Ready to get American back to work or whatever the slogan is.

 

[TarNaru33]

Isn't SK densely populated?

It is, which is why I do agree it will kill 10s of thousands within that 30 min mark, but 1 million even in an hour is a very exaggerated. Not that 10,000 is little, but I really don't agree with letting a NK be Nuclear.

Also like I mention the fact that most of the Artillery pieces is not within range of the city.

 

[David H Wong]

This kind of puts me in the weird situation of beginning to defend the competence of someone like Bannon, which just feels wrong, but at the same; competence is contextual. When the person who makes the final decision is someone with the ego size of a planet like Trump, it's really hard to judge competence of the underlings unless the context by which it's judged is how fondly they can tickle trumps sack into having him do as they please.

He hasn't done so well lately on that front either. Which is better for all parties but Bannon

Bannon's idea to accompany all of his nationalism stuff with that massive infrastructure plan was brilliant. A trillion dollars in spending for hundreds of thousands of jobs in construction and engineering etc while making big noise about punishing China and bringing home manufacturing jobs? Trump could have done literally anything else and still won reelection. He was dead-on: working class white America cares about jobs, jobs, jobs. He knew if they could bring home jobs then nothing else would matter.

That all fell apart as soon as they tried to take on healthcare, but I think that repealing Obamacare was a Trump obsession. I think Bannon would have preferred to have tabled that for 2017 and instead tackled tax reform and infrastructure - two hugely popular things they could have gotten passed pretty easily. Then you can come back and address health care once you've built up some political capital and popularity.

All of that assumes a competent president, though. Trump being terrible at this really has made all the difference.

 

[Violet_0]

This is all sorts of weird. Does that mean he really DOES consider the alt-right neo nazis an expendable thing to be tossed aside? This is a pretty big departure from the white nationalist image everyone for and against him has painted him as. Can't help feeling like this is some sort of elaborate (but not necessarily smart) double agent style PR move meant to throw the media off balance or something.

right-wing populists have sort of a history of using their radicalized followers and then tossing them aside when it suits them

 

[JettDash]

Bannon's idea to accompany all of his nationalism stuff with that massive infrastructure plan was brilliant. A trillion dollars in spending for hundreds of thousands of jobs in construction and engineering etc while making big noise about punishing China and bringing home manufacturing jobs? Trump could have done literally anything else and still won reelection. He was dead-on: working class white America cares about jobs, jobs, jobs. He knew if they could bring home jobs then nothing else would matter.

That all fell apart as soon as they tried to take on healthcare, but I think that repealing Obamacare was a Trump obsession. I think Bannon would have preferred to have tabled that for 2017 and instead tackled tax reform and infrastructure - two hugely popular things they could have gotten passed pretty easily. Then you can come back and address health care once you've built up some political capital and popularity.

All of that assumes a competent president, though. Trump being terrible at this really has made all the difference.

Bannon is actually in favor of raising taxes on rich people to fund projects. But there is zero chance that will happen. Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell would slit their throats before doing that. It would be very popular but they work for the rich not the America people as a whole.

 

[Conciliator]

Is this a work or a shoot? I have no idea

yes, I guess it doesn't need to be said that anything going on right now is 'weird,' but I too am really puzzled about what Bannon's game is here.

 

[Muppet of a Man]

Kissinger. Nevermind prolonging Vietnam, the man is a war criminal.

Yeah, he effectively created the nightmare that is the modern world's Middle East.

 

[Nether!]

Yikes, who knows if this will do anything.
It's almost impossible to keep up with everything that's happened.
I've forgotten a lot of stuff that seems insane at the time.
Are there any good recap articles to remind me about the whole campaign and presidency so far?
This one is great, but it only covers a week or so: https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/the-moment-when-it-really-started-to-feel-insane-an-oral-history-of-the-scaramucci-era/

 

[CaviarMeths]

His comments on China and North Korea are... reasonable? What is this.

But then he's all "pay no attention to the Nazis behind the curtain."

 

[Davide]

“To me,” Bannon said, “the economic war with China is everything. And we have to be maniacally focused on that. If we continue to lose it, we're five years away, I think, ten years at the most, of hitting an inflection point from which we'll never be able to recover.”

How about that clean energy then?

 

[E-phonk]

The Atlanta article in the other thread reminded me of this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5ubluwNkqg
What Bannon is doing comes straight out of the Surkov playbook: influence, confuse, distract and repeat.

From an article in the Economist about him:

As the political mastermind for Vladimir Putin for most of the 2000s, Mr Surkov engineered a system of make-believe that worked devilishly well in the real world. Russia was a land of imitation political parties, stage-managed media and fake social movements, undergirded by the post-modern sense that nothing was genuine. Mr Surkov called his creation ”sovereign democracy," a term whose vagueness revealed its flexibility.

 

[gun_haver]

Well at least he isn't an idiot. He's just a shithead. That's actually better than I was expecting.

 

[Crema]

Well he's 100% right on Korea and I suspect he's fairly on the money about China diminishing American influence in the world in the coming years.

Also...

Can we ban this shit? It's offensive and adds absolutely nothing to the discussion.

 

[Red]

It doesn't make sense for Bannon to call a reporter and assume he is off the record. There must have been motivation for this. He may be challenging Trump to fire him, or reframing himself in the media, or undermining the admin out of spite (knowing he will soon be let go anyway). It could be something else. It's almost certainly not a simple mistake.

 

[Zeyphersan]

It doesn't make sense for Bannon to call a reporter and assume he is off the record. There must have been motivation for this. He may be challenging Trump to fire him, or reframing himself in the media, or undermining the admin out of spite (knowing he will soon be let go anyway). It could be something else. It's almost certainly not a simple mistake.

I mean, didn’t The Mooch do the same thing?

 

[Red]

I mean, didn’t The Mooch do the same thing?

Maybe? I think the mooch was going through some destabilizing personal issues, and wasn't a rational actor the same way Bannon seems to be. Bannon used to run a news """"""news"""""" website, you would think he'd have more understanding of the press.

 

[JettDash]

I mean, didn’t The Mooch do the same thing?

The Mooch doesn't know how journalism works. He called that reporter to try to find out who leaked something to him, I think.

 

[Conciliator]

just no one let this guy at any point act like he didn't completely fuel and organize hate and racism in the name of a hateful ideology and to increase his own power. It doesn't really fuckin matter what he says, thinks, or actually believes in the end.

don't let him become "The Sane Guy" in the white house

 

[Necron]

This is a man who wants nothing more more than chaos in the world. It's his goal.
He's more scary to me than Trump. This guy is smart and one of the most manipulative guys around.
He's right about North Korea though, i think.

Petyr Baelish incarnate.

Chaos is a ladder...

 

[Dryk]

What's interesting is that I was under the impression Bannon was just fine with the disintegration of the American Hegemony and was indeed actively working towards it.

Yeah he's going about it in a funny way isn't he

 

[TarpitCarnivore]

That odd feeling when even Steve Bannon is dunking on Nazis but Trump won't.

He's playing the crowd. Ever notice the most sadistic people are ones who can twist the audience whenever they need? Banon is saying all the things he needs to

 

[Copenap]

He has a point. If you give ppl better, supercial, economic conditions ("No universal healthcare? Don't worry, here's less taxes, hope you don't get cancer!" an other neoliberal economic policies), they'll forget you are a racist, you support and endorse those people.

That's the sad true, ppl ultmately don't care about that. They will acknowledge that racism is bad, but they don't care their president is racist and is bad for minorities, they'll vote him, because they now pay less taxes.

Bullshit, nobody voted him for lower taxes. They got exactly what they hoped for.

 

[Meadows]

at least he's right about NK

 

[Red]

Bullshit, nobody voted him for lower taxes. They got exactly what they hoped for.

Patently untrue.

 

[_dazed]

Are people really arguing that millions won't die in an war with North Korea?

NK is ALREADY a nuclear state! In the event of a war they know they will lose they aren't going to use artillery vs Seoul, they are going to lob a nuke at it .


Unless the plan is to evacuate the entire population. That's the fact to face.

 

[Aurongel]

Bullshit, nobody voted him for lower taxes. They got exactly what they hoped for.

As far from the truth as possible. Party line Republican voters, especially business men often vote solely because of the parties association with lowering bureaucracy.

 

[III-V]

Yikes, who knows if this will do anything.
It's almost impossible to keep up with everything that's happened.
I've forgotten a lot of stuff that seems insane at the time.
Are there any good recap articles to remind me about the whole campaign and presidency so far?
This one is great, but it only covers a week or so: https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/the-moment-when-it-really-started-to-feel-insane-an-oral-history-of-the-scaramucci-era/

This site keeps a pretty good record of delirious donnies antics:

https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com

 

[Dehnus]

This is just coming out from a phone call he had with a reporter yesterday. Some choice quotes below but I'd suggest reading the whole thing. Lots on his views of China and North Korea as well.

http://prospect.org/article/steve-bannon-unrepentant

The problem with economic nationalism, other countries will do it to you too. And in the end it either becomes a race to the bottom.. with the 1% getting everything and the 0.1% getting most of that.... or:

You end up with wars all over the place both economic and physical. As people tend to remember slights.

 

[Wolfgunblood Garopa]

If trade war with China is everything, why were they against the TPP? Trump/Bannon essentially made the problem much worse with that decision. Now China can set the table in the region for their benefit without any US involvement that would serve American interests. If Bannon actually believes his rhetoric on trade with China, and he actually has some influence in the Trump admin, what gives? It makes no sense unless he does not believe his rhetoric or he has never had influence with Trump. Or it's just another case of a Republican winning an election- they have no values or beliefs and they just say anything to win- it's all bullshit.

 

[Gattsu25]

This is all sorts of weird. Does that mean he really DOES consider the alt-right neo nazis an expendable thing to be tossed aside? This is a pretty big departure from the white nationalist image everyone for and against him has painted him as. Can't help feeling like this is some sort of elaborate (but not necessarily smart) double agent style PR move meant to throw the media off balance or something.

He probably is a leaker who incorrectly assumed that all reporters, without needing to establish that they were speaking off the record, would keep quiet about who their inside line into the Whitehouse was.

 

[opoth]

Of course he would say he didn't think he was on the record. This makes him sound like he was really speaking from the heart. You people really falling for this?

Chaos is indeed a ladder

 

[Tovarisc]

Bannon did not know he was on the record, per Axios. https://www.axios.com/bannons-colle...utm_medium=twsocialshare&utm_campaign=organic

lolololololol

Kids, this is why you don't do coke with Mooch...

 

[E92 M3]

Are people really arguing that millions won't die in an war with North Korea?

NK is ALREADY a nuclear state! In the event of a war they know they will lose they aren't going to use artillery vs Seoul, they are going to lob a nuke at it .


Unless the plan is to evacuate the entire population. That's the fact to face.

Kim isn't stupid enough to nuke his next door neighbor. Hell, if any nuke gets used it will be game over. The North Korea crisis will be resolved diplomatically.

 

[BajiBoxer]

As far from the truth as possible. Party line Republican voters, especially business men often vote solely because of the parties association with lowering bureaucracy.

I'd say both issues are linked. Getting rid of the bureaucracy is a common tool/talking point to lower the status of various groups they see as inferior. It's also undermined on a regular basis as things that actualy lessen beuracracy are rejected if they benefit minority groups.

 

[III-V]

Some elements of this feel really scripted. How can an administration be so clumsy?

If this isn't some smoke and mirrors shit, I can't see how Bannon doesn't get the axe over this.

 

[jmdajr]

Unexpected comments.

 

[_dazed]

Kim isn't stupid enough to nuke his next door neighbor. Hell, if any nuke gets used it will be game over. The North Korea crisis will be resolved diplomatically.

From NKs perspective any war is game over. If they artillery Seoul it's game over. They are gonna go straight to nukes because why wouldn't they.

 

[Vyer]

Bannon already told us what he is about. Undermining and disrupting our government and administrative capabilities while empowering fringe and extremist groups like the alt right.

Everybody falling for this crap and trying to tag his 'brilliance' and 'sanity' while just ignoring his role in the damage Trump is causing is just falling for the same old shit. There is nothing about that shitheel you should be conned into praising.

 

[Blader]

I mean, didn’t The Mooch do the same thing?

The Mooch is used to being ignored by reporters. Bannon's background is in media!

 

[Dr.Acula]

Not everything is 16th dimensional chess. It's possible, that Bannon, having been under pressure and isolation in recent weeks, just made a foolhardy mistake while venting.

 

[Gattsu25]

Not everything is 16th dimensional chess. It's possible, that Bannon, having been under pressure and isolation in recent weeks, just made a foolhardy mistake while venting.

Nah, apparently me thinking the same thing is really me just falling for his 36th dimensional chess.

 

[Red]

Not everything is 16th dimensional chess. It's possible, that Bannon, having been under pressure and isolation in recent weeks, just made a foolhardy mistake while venting.

Yes, it's possible. In the same way that a firefighter might spray gasoline on a burning house, or a doctor might remove all a patient's toes during an appendectomy.

 

[gcubed]

I'm still waiting for these guys to do anything remotely in the vein of economic populism.


"If Democrats keep taking about racism and we keep running around like a bunch of monkeys fucking footballs, we got em!"