Former Breitbart News spokesman Kurt Bardella lashed out Friday against Donald Trump’s recent hiring of the website’s general chairman, Stephen Bannon, and said the Republican candidate’s newly appointed presidential campaign chief promotes an agenda “that borders on anarchism.”
Mr. Bardella, who represented the conservative news site for two years before resigning in March, sharply critiqued his former colleague’s hiring by the Trump campaign in an editorial published by The Hill a day after the lifelong Republican told ABC News he will vote for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in November.
Detailing his decision further for The Hill, Mr. Bardella made no qualms about expressing his concerning about putting Mr. Bannon at the helm of the Trump campaign.
“Steve ran the site and controlled the content as a dictator, not only limiting the expression of his journalists but also purposefully changing the narrative to increase vitriol, playing to the fears of his readers,” Mr. Bardella wrote.
“Some may wonder if Donald Trump is purposeful in delivering his insensitive and often-bigoted comments that tend to serve as fodder for his supporters. With Steve there is no question, he is deliberate in his language and antagonism and promotes something beyond anti-establishment sentiment that borders on anarchism.”
Prior to being hired by the Republican candidate, Mr. Bannon allowed Breitbart “to become the de facto propaganda machine for Donald Trump,” added Mr. Bardella, who left the organization earlier this year amid a dispute concerning a reporter for the website who said she was assaulted by Mr. Trump’s campaign manager at the time, Corey Lewandowski.
“Donald Trump is dangerous for America and is surrounding himself with a team that will empower him to leave a lasting mark on the political discourse in this country. Whether he wins this election or not, he is building an organization that ensures that this personal brand of nihilism continues to have a platform,” he wrote in the op-ed.
The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment Saturday when asked about Mr. Bardella’s remarks. Mr. Bannon did not immediately respond upon being contacted by ABC News ahead of its article Thursday in which his former colleague accused him of running meetings that sounded “like a white supremacist rally.”
“This is someone who has a very low moral compass,” Mr. Bardello told ABC News, “and the idea that this is the type of person that Donald Trump, as the Republican nominee, as president, would have closest to him is very disturbing.”
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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