He left his role as a chief White House campaign strategist almost three years ago. Now some analysts are wondering if Steve Bannon should revisit his former advisory role as President Trump navigates his reelection bid amid negative polls and hostile news coverage.
Mr. Bannon has already offered some insight on Mr. Trump’s campaign strategy, which essentially advises the president to act like a president.
“He’s the president of the United States. He’s not a candidate. You act like president of the United States, you take action like the president of the United States, you govern like you are president of the United States, you are going to be reelected,” Mr. Bannon said in an interview with talk radio host John Fredericks this week.
Mr. Trump should concentrate on his previous active policy roles which won him so much favor in previous times, Mr. Bannon noted.
“We don’t need rallies. We need the president five days a week out there doing those types of things, showing people he as president is the driver of action,” Mr. Bannon said.
Rob Crilly, White House correspondent for the Washington Examiner, wrote that Mr. Bannon “has raised the alarm this week over a faltering campaign, speaking out publicly and privately for an end to a rally-based strategy, leaving Trump insiders to wonder whether he is maneuvering for a return to influence.”
“After Saturday’s disastrous rally in Tulsa, Bannon demanded that the reelection effort concentrates on amplifying action taken by the president in office and is urging other conservative commentators to go on the attack to force a shake-up, according to multiple sources,” Mr. Crilly said.
Mr. Bannon, former executive chairman of Brietbart News, currently hosts a podcast titled “War Room”. In the meantime, others have called for him to renew his role as White House adviser.
“President Trump’s moribund reelection campaign could use a bit of a jump start here in the dog days of summer and I know just the guy to do it: one Stephen K. Bannon,” wrote Stephen Kruiser, a columnist for PJ Media. “Full disclosure: this wasn’t my idea, a political junkie Trump supporter friend of mine mentioned it earlier in the week. I haven’t been able to get the idea out of my head since then, however.
“It’s not that I am in a dead panic about Trump’s chances,” Mr. Kruiser said. “It’s still early from an election year perspective and, as I have written more than once, I’m rather skeptical of the polls. I just feel that the campaign at present is oozing ennui — a subject I’m going to explore more in a column. The Bannon touch could inject a little life into this listless organization.
“Bring Bannon back, stat,” he wrote.
