A Member of Trump’s Diversity Council Wants Steve Bannon Fired

And that’s just the first step.

White House chief strategist Steve Bannon.Michael Kappeler/ZUMA

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One member of President Donald Trump’s National Diversity Council has a message for the president: Fire Steve Bannon.

Javier Palomarez, the president and CEO of the US Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, said in a press release that condemning white supremacy “should have been a no-brainer” for Trump after a white nationalist rally turned violent in Charlottesville over the weekend. Instead, Palomarez said, Bannon, the White House’s chief strategist, and other members of the administration have used “winks and nods” to win votes from “the most evil elements of our society.” 

On Monday, after widespread criticism from both parties, Trump finally issued what many saw as a reluctant condemnation of white supremacist violence. Palomarez did not say he would resign from the diversity council. On Tuesday, Scott Paul of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, a nonprofit group, became the fourth business leader to resign from Trump’s American Manufacturing Council in the immediate aftermath of the president’s tepid Charlottesville response.

Palomarez made clear that he believes the blame “ultimately resides” with the president. Firing Bannon, he said, is just the first step.

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BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things they don’t like—which is most things that are true.

No one gets to tell Mother Jones what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

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