Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon was preparing to dismiss a controversial new book on President Donald Trump, but decided not to after the president turned on him, according to a report in CNN.
"As I said during my interview with '60 Minutes' and many times since, there is no basis to the Russian investigation. It's a political witch hunt orchestrated by the left," Bannon's statement was going to say, according to the source familiar with the situation. "Don Jr., like his father, is a great American and a patriot. And we all know Don Jr. did not knowingly meet with Russian agents. Paul Manafort is an independent actor who clearly put his own interests ahead of the campaign and all involved. Michael Wolff took my remarks about Don Jr. out of context to sell his book. Sadly, this is yet another lefty hatchet job intended to disrespect our President and his supporters."
Bannon’s quotes in Michael Wolff’s bombshell new book, “Fire and Fury,” have been the target of the president’s wrath. Trump’s former aide is quoted in the book describing the Trump Tower meeting between the president’s son and a group of Russians during the 2016 election campaign as “treasonous” and “unpatriotic,” and referring to Ivanka Trump, the president’s eldest daughter and top White House adviser, as “dumb as a brick.”
An excerpt of the book was released Wednesday and hit bookshelves Friday.
Trump called the book phony and referred to Bannon as “Sloppy Steve.”
“Steve Bannon has nothing to do with me or my Presidency. When he was fired, he not only lost his job, he lost his mind,” Trump said in a statement.
Bannon responded to Trump's blistering criticism by calling the president "a great man" and saying, "I support him day in and day out."
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