Bannon and his outsize role: He's not the first to wield so much influence
| Washington
When President Trump gave Stephen Bannon, his chief political strategist, a plum spot on the National Security Council鈥檚 (NSC) top committee, some in Washington raised a collective eyebrow.
Mr. Bannon, the former CEO of the conservative populist Breitbart News, was already a pivotal White House player on domestic and political matters. Now his portfolio is even wider, encompassing national security 鈥� including the controversial order to temporarily bar citizens of seven mostly Muslim countries from entering the United States. Bannon reportedly played a key role in shaping the measure.
Trump鈥檚 move on the NSC gave Bannon a formal seat on its 鈥減rincipals committee,鈥� the top interagency group on national security. It also limited attendance by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and director of national intelligence only to certain meetings, when "issues pertaining to their responsibilities and expertise are to be discussed," issued Saturday.
To some observers, like former Obama CIA and Pentagon chief Robert Gates, it鈥檚 the latter part that is upsetting, not Bannon鈥檚 elevation. Indeed, presidents enjoy wide latitude in who they bring in as advisers, and in how they are deployed. History shows that past presidents have had close advisers whose portfolios range far and wide.
鈥淔or the political guys to move in and then be at the arm of the president on both domestic and foreign policy is actually more common than you鈥檇 think,鈥� says presidential historian David Pietrusza.
The best historical analogy may be Edward Mandell House, a diplomat, politician, and close adviser to President Woodrow Wilson. 鈥淐olonel House,鈥� as he was known, despite his lack of military experience, advised President Wilson both politically and on foreign affairs.
鈥淗e was the prototypical shadowy guy who never had an official position, but who would be sent off to Europe to negotiate with the crowned and uncrowned heads to make peace,鈥� says Mr. Pietrusza.
Under President Franklin Roosevelt, two top advisers 鈥� Louis McHenry Howe and Harry Hopkins 鈥� were so close to the president that they took up residence at the White House. Mr. Hopkins鈥檚 brief spanned the top issues of a momentous presidency, both as an architect of the New Deal and as President Roosevelt鈥檚 chief diplomatic adviser during World War II.
Then there鈥檚 President John F. Kennedy, whose brother Robert F. Kennedy was a close adviser 鈥� and his attorney general. It was the latter appointment that triggered an anti-nepotism law that, 50 years later, Trump had to satisfy in making his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, a top White House adviser.
To suggest that Bannon enjoys unprecedented power as a White House adviser might be Trumpian in its hyperbole. Trump clearly appreciates Bannon鈥檚 counsel, and trusts him. But for now, no one appears closer to Trump as an adviser than Mr. Kushner, the husband of Trump鈥檚 daughter Ivanka.
The headlines around Bannon鈥檚 elevation to the NSC may be triggered in part by his politics. Where Kushner is all about loyalty to his father-in-law, Bannon is defined by the ideology that has caught Trump鈥檚 eye and brought him to the Oval Office.
As chairman of Breitbart, Bannon presided over a site that catered to the so-called 鈥渁lt-right,鈥� and its nationalist, populist, at-times racist and misogynist views. (In his career, Bannon has also been a Navy officer, an investment banker, and a Hollywood producer.) Now, among his many roles as a close aide to Trump, Bannon has also become one of the administration鈥檚 fiercest media critics.
鈥淭he media should be embarrassed and humiliated and keep its mouth shut and just listen for a while,鈥� Bannon in an interview last week.
Bannon鈥檚 harsh words certainly don鈥檛 endear him to the Washington press corps. But it鈥檚 his wide policy berth and penchant for dramatic displays of power 鈥� such as the shock-and-awe start to the Trump presidency that he helped orchestrate 鈥� that have made him a force, and caused such alarm.
To bolster their case that Bannon鈥檚 new perch on the NSC is inappropriate, some observers point to the example of the last Republican president, George W. Bush.
He forbade his top political strategist, Karl Rove, from attending NSC meetings, according to Mr. Bush鈥檚 former chief of staff Josh Bolten. Bush didn鈥檛 want life-and-death decisions involving people in uniform to be 鈥渢ainted by any political decisions,鈥� Mr. Bolten said last year.
White House spokesman Sean Spicer countered with the example of former President Obama鈥檚 top political operative, David Axelrod, saying he had attended classified NSC meetings 鈥渁ll the time.鈥�
鈥淭hat is not true,鈥� Mr. Axelrod replied in a CNN column. In 2009, he writes, as a senior adviser to Mr. Obama, he watched the NSC Principals Committee debate strategy over the war with Al Qaeda. But 鈥淚 was not a member of the committee. I did not speak or participate.鈥�
The debate over Bannon鈥檚 role in the Trump White House has only started. The president鈥檚 inner circle of advisers 鈥� Kushner, Bannon, senior adviser Kellyanne Conway, and chief of staff Reince Priebus 鈥� may already have .鈥� Some Trump observers say that he likes 鈥渃reative conflict,鈥� and that he believes that鈥檚 how good ideas emerge.
But one point is already clear: In the shadow of a larger-than-life president, Bannon has emerged as a larger-than-life figure in his own right.
