Steve Bannon Works to Elect Right-Wing Trump Clones Throughout Europe BILL BERKOWITZ FOR BUZZFLASH AT TRUTHOUT
Steve Bannon Works to Elect Right-Wing Trump Clones Throughout Europe
BILL BERKOWITZ FOR BUZZFLASH AT TRUTHOUT
Thursday, 26 July 2018
Steve Bannon has a new project; establish a non-profit foundation that will provide the necessary finances, data, and infrastructure to enable right-wing nationalist parties to elect clones of Donald Trump throughout Europe. His starting point is the take over of the European Parliament, which will be having elections next spring.
According to The Daily Beast's Nico Hines, "The operation is also supposed to serve as a link between Europe's right-wing movements and the pro-Trump Freedom Caucus in the U.S." And, as always these days, lurking in the background is Russia's Vladimir Putin.
These days, Bannon, Trump's chief strategist now exiled – at least temporarily – "has been assiduously cultivating ties with European far-right and populist movements, including France's National Rally (formerly the National Front), Italy's Lega, Hungary's Fidesz, and the British right-wing network centered around Nigel Farage, a prominent campaigner for Brexit," Vice News' Tim Hume recently reported. "Now he's unveiled the masterplan behind it all: a foundation to unite and support Europe's populist right-wing parties, with the goal of winning power in the European Parliament."
Bannon told The Daily Beast that he was going to launch a foundation in Brussels, Belgium called The Movement, "whose 10-or-so staff will provide polling, messaging, data-targeting and research to European far-right and anti-establishment parties," Hume pointed out.
Interestingly enough, "Populists around the continent also like to speak of themselves as a 'movement,' be it the right-wing nationalist FPÖ in Austria or the Five Star Movement in Italy," taiwannews.com recently pointed out. "The Alternative for Germany (AfD) maintains relationships with the right-wing extremist Identitarian Movement."
"The Movement plans to research and write detailed policy proposals that can be used by like-minded parties; commission pan-European or targeted polling; and share expertise in election war room methodology such as message discipline, data-led voter targeting and field operations," Hines reported. "Depending on electoral law in individual countries, the foundation may be able to take part in some campaigns directly while bolstering other populist groups indirectly."
"Right-wing populist nationalism" is destined to shape Europe's future, Bannon believes. "Right-wing populist nationalism is what will happen. That's what will govern," Bannon told The Daily Beast. "You're going to have individual nation states with their own identities, their own borders."
Bannon sees several of the current leaders as particularly vulnerable. According to The Daily Beast, Bannon thinks that German chancellor Angela Merkel and French president Emmanuel Macron as weakened leaders susceptible to defeat. "Right-wing populist nationalism is what will happen. That's what will govern," Bannon told The Daily Beast. "You're going to have individual nation states with their own identities, their own borders."
Bannon claims to be wary of ultra-nationalist parties too focused on immigration. "Some people may opt out because they think some of the guys may be too immigrant focused," he said. "We're not looking to include any ethno-nationalist parties in this although guys like the Sweden Democrats or the True Finns are perfect casting."
Interestingly, Bannon is looking to liberal financier George Soros as a model for his future endeavors. "Soros is brilliant," he conceded. "He's evil but he's brilliant." And, while Soros has been often characterized as the international left's puppet master, Bannon looks forward to that role. "I'm a Bond villain. I kind of dig it."
Bannon's success will in part depend on how much money he can raise, and which European right-wing parties are interested in his project.
Over the years, he was very successful raising money in the U.S. for Breitbart News and other right-wing projects. "I don't think Bannon is necessarily a game changer," Matthew Goodwin, visiting senior fellow in Chatham House's Europe programme, told Vice News. "But he'll come with links and networks from the U.S., and potentially access to money. You have to remember that many populist right groups in Europe have often lacked resourcing."
That being said, who in the Republican donor class might support Bannon's grandiose project? Before being dumped by the White House, Bannon had been in talks about establishing a political non-profit group in the homeland with such right-wing donors as Las Vegas casino magnate Sheldon G. Adelson; a Chicago Cubs owner, Todd Ricketts; and a Home Depot founder, Bernard Marcus.
After his backing of Alabama's controversial Roy Moore, and stating that he was going after establishment Republicans, GOP donors lost interest. More importantly the spigot of almost unlimited money from the Mercer family, which had pumped tens of millions of dollars into Bannon projects, was immediately shut off.
Bannon says that the money will come from some bigger donors as well as smaller contributions from Americans and Europeans. He also ruled out taking any money from Russia or Russian sources.
Thus far, support for The Movement has been mixed. Several European nationalist patties have indicated that they want no part of Bannon. Others, are more open. And still others, like Marine LePen, leader of France's National Rally (formerly the National Front), has reportedly endorsed the project, although no official statements have been released.
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