Steve Bannon makes rare public remarks at CPAC 24:04
Story highlights
- The fact that Bannon doesn't talk much in public has created an aura in Washington for him
- Here are some of Bannon's most interesting passages and some of his more interesting word choices
Washington (CNN)White
House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon rarely appears in public and rarely
speaks to the press, much less on live television. So his appearance
alongside White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus Thursday was hotly
anticipated and closely watched.
The
men performed a buddy schtick of sorts, portraying the yin and yang
that bring the White House together and keep it running not in chaos as
some media reports have claimed, but like the "fine-tuned" machine
President Donald Trump bragged about during a news conference last week.
Priebus keeps the trains running, according to Bannon, and Bannon does
the big ideas, according to Priebus.
The
fact that Bannon doesn't talk much in public has created an aura in
Washington for him. Critics say he's the guiding force behind Trump's
policies. "Saturday Night Live" portrayed him as the Grim Reaper who
sits behind Trump in the Oval Office.
'SNL': Trump and Bannon call world leaders 01:44
Bannon
did not seem like the Grim Reaper on Thursday. He came off as rumpled
and overworked, but passionate about his boss, even if he admittedly
"runs a little hot."
But he did
cram a lot of those big ideas Priebus mentioned into what was billed as a
short and informal Q&A. One could infer a lot about Trump's goals
for the next four years from what Bannon said. Here are some of the most
interesting passages and some of his more interesting word choices:
Trump is going to do exactly what he said during the campaign
"This
is the main thing that the mainstream media -- or the opposition party
-- never caught, is that if you want to see the Trump agenda it's very
simple. It was all in the speeches. He went around to those rallies and
the speeches had an enormous amount of content in them ... He's laid out
an agenda with those speeches with the promises he made and our job
every day is to just to execute on that ... he's maniacally focused on
that."
"All of those promises are going to be implemented," he said.
There are three pillars of Trump's plan
"I
kind of break it up into three verticals of three buckets," Bannon
said. "The first is kind of national security and sovereignty and that's
your intelligence, the Defense Department, Homeland Security.
"The
second line of work is what I refer to as 'economic nationalism' and
that is Wilbur Ross at Commerce, Steven Mnuchin at Treasury, (Robert)
Lighthizer at Trade, (National Trade Council head) Peter Navarro,
(adviser) Stephen Miller, these people that are rethinking how we're
gonna reconstruct our trade arrangements around the world.
"The third, broadly, line of work is what is 'deconstruction' of the administrative state."
'Economic nationalism' is Bannon's favorite buzz term
He used variations of the term three times in describing the Trump agenda.
Multilateral relationships are bad, bilateral relationships are good.
"I
think one of the most pivotal moments in modern American history was
(Trump's) immediate withdraw from (Trans-Pacific Partnership). That got
us out of a trade deal and let our sovereignty come back to ourselves,
the people. The mainstream media don't get this, but we're already
working in consultation with the Hill. People are starting to think
through a whole raft of amazing and innovative, bilateral relationships
-- bilateral trading relationships with people that will reposition
America in the world as a fair trading nation and start to bring jobs.
High value added, manufacturing jobs, back to the United States of
America."
They're going to 'deconstruct' the current regulatory system
"Every
business leader we've had in is saying not just taxes, but it is also
the regulation. I think the consistent, if you look at these Cabinet
appointees, they were selected for a reason, and that is the
deconstruction. The way the progressive left runs is, if they can't get
it passed, they're just going to put in some sort of regulation in an
agency. That's all going to be deconstructed and I think that that's why
this regulatory thing is so important."
The media is the 'opposition party,' and 'it's only going to get worse'
Bannon
used the term "opposition party" several times when describing the
media, and he predicted White House confrontations with journalists
would get worse.
"They're
corporatist, globalist media that are adamantly opposed to an economic
nationalist agenda like Donald Trump has," he said. "Here's why it's
going to get worse: Because he's going to continue to press his agenda.
And as economic conditions get better, as more jobs get better, they're
going to continue to fight. If you think they're going to give you your
country back without a fight, you are sadly mistaken. Every day, it is
going to be a fight. And that is what I'm proudest about Donald Trump."
The US will experience a new political order
"I've
said that there's a new political order that's being formed out of
this," Bannon said. "And it's still being formed. But if you look at the
wide degree of opinions in this room -- whether you're a populist;
whether you're a limited-government conservative; whether you're
libertarian; whether you're an economic nationalist -- we have wide and
sometimes divergent opinions. But I think we (agree on) the center core
of what we believe, that we're a nation with an economy. Not an economy
just in some global marketplace with open borders, but we are a nation
with a culture and a reason for being. And I think that is what unites
us and I think that is what is going to unite this movement going
forward."
Bannon is not afraid to use words like 'nationalism' and 'culture'
"Nationalism,
and especially "white nationalism," are terms fraught with historical
tensions and can elicit fear from minorities affected by racist or
prejudiced mindsets.
And Bannon has been accused of being a friend to white nationalists, although he has rejected it in the past.
But that hasn't stopped him from keeping the term "economic
nationalism" in his rhetorical quiver. He also said "we are a nation
with culture and a reason for being." He didn't elaborate, but that's an
idea sure to cause debate and turmoil in a nation where for many years
the overriding language from politicians was one of inclusion of new
cultures and pride in a nation of immigrants.
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