WSJ Editorial Calls Out Steve Bannon for White House ‘Dysfunction’

Chief strategist Steve Bannon’s “warring habits” have caused “much of the White House dysfunction” in recent days, and new Chief of Staff John Kelly should start with him as he seeks to restore order, The Wall Street Journal’s editorial board writes. In an editorial published online late Tuesday, the paper singled Bannon out for the “vilification” in recent days of National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster, who faced a backlash from conservative staffers after dismissing several figures close to Bannon. Warning of “alt-right brigades who seem to rise up as if on call” to strike Bannon’s opponents, the paper says “the Bannon brigades outside the White House” will continue to wreak havoc on the Trump administration if given the chance. “Mr. Trump may worry about the damage Mr. Bannon and his allies could do to his administration if he is no longer part of the White House team,” the editorial board writes. “But if his minions continue to vilify his colleagues inside the White House, how can anyone tell the difference?”