Donald Trump’s decision making is continuing to rub many Americans the wrong way as he prepares to take office in the White House in January.
The former reality star turned President-elect has began the process of selecting his White House staff and as expected, many of those he’s appointing have questionable histories, to say the least. The latest of Trump’s less-than-stellar appointees is none other than former Breitbart News chairman Stephen Bannon. Until officially joining the Trump campaign in August, Bannon spearheaded the conservative news site, which is said to be closely affiliated with the white nationalist-backed “alt-right” movement, according to the Washington Post. The Post describes alt-right as “a fringe conservative movement saturated with racially insensitive rhetoric and elements of outright white nationalism.”
Both the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Council on American-Islamic Relations have condemned Trump’s choosing of Bannon, accusing Breitbart of “embracing eco-nationalism” and curating “misogynistic and racist stories targeting women, people of color and immigrants,” under Bannon’s direction.
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Bannon has also been embroiled in his fair share of controversy outside of politics. In 2007, Bannon’s ex-wife Mary Louise-Piccard accused him of domestic violence and also claimed she’d heard him make anti-Semitic comments in which he allegedly spoke about being against his daughters attending school with “whiny” Jewish children.
Bannon being named as a member Trump’s White House staff is one of several appointments that have found him at the center of much backlash following the 2016 presidential election.