The White House said Monday that President Trump isn’t likely to embrace former adviser Steve Bannon, after the ex-staffer’s grudging apology for comments in an unflattering book about the president and his family.
“I don’t believe there is any way back for Mr. Bannon at this point,” White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley told reporters aboard Air Force One as the president traveled to Nashville, Tennessee. “It is very obvious Mr. Bannon worked with [author Michael] Wolff in this particular book.”
Mr. Bannon said Sunday he regretted not speaking out sooner about alleged falsehoods in the book, which quotes him predicting that special counsel Robert Mueller will crack Donald Trump Jr. “like an egg” in his Russia investigation. The former White House strategist also said in the book that Donald Trump Jr.’s meeting in June 2016 with a Russian lawyer was “treasonous.”
Mr. Bannon has since said his comments were aimed at former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, not at the president’s son.
The president has been calling Mr. Bannon “Sloppy Steve” since the book came out, and said Mr. Bannon had nothing to do with his successes as president.
Mr. Gidley said the president’s views about his former adviser won’t change anytime soon.
“The president has been very clear on his thoughts,” he told reporters. “It is very obvious the book is false and fake.”
He added, “When you go after somebody’s family in the matter which he did, two of the president’s children are serving this nation, sacrificing in their service, it is repugnant, it is grotesque and I challenge anybody to go and talk about somebody’s family and see if that person doesn’t come back and comes back hard.”
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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