A Super PAC backed by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) took aim at former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon Tuesday, criticizing comments Bannon made Sunday in which he called the firing of former FBI Director James Comey “the biggest mistake in modern political history.”
Bannon, who has resumed his role as Executive Chairman of Breitbart News since he resigned from the White House in August, said in an interview with CBS’s 60 Minutes that the firing of Comey led to the appointment of special counsel Robert Mueller in the probe into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election.
Interviewer Charlie Rose asked Bannon if he had privately described the firing of James Comey “as the biggest mistake in political history.”
“That probably would be too bombastic even for me, but maybe modern political history,” Bannon responded.
But Bannon agreed that if Comey had not been fired, Mueller would not have been appointed.
“True,” he said. ” I don’t think there’s any doubt that if James Comey had not been fired, we would not have a special counsel, yes.”
This comment sparked the ire of the Senate Leadership Fund — which says its goal is to “protect and expand the Republican Senate Majority” — with President and CEO Steven Law attacking Bannon’s comments while failing to make any counterargument to them.
“Steve Bannon is dead wrong,” Law said in the wispy statement. “Every fact that has come out about James Comey’s handling of the Clinton email investigation has affirmed the rightness of President Trump’s decision.”
Law did not specify which “fact” affirmed the “rightness” of Trump’s decision, nor did he challenge the assertion that Comey’s firing led to the appointment of Mueller.
Law also serves as the CEO of “American Crossroads” — the Super PAC founded by Karl Rove, who himself has also taken a number of shots at Bannon and has been a frequent critic of President Trump. Trump, in turn, called Rove a “dishonorable guy” in 2016 and said he should not be allowed to write for the Wall Street Journal.
Adam Shaw is a Breitbart News politics reporter based in New York. Follow Adam on Twitter: @AdamShawNY
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.