Steve Bannon is fighting to advance President Trump’s agenda, and he has thrown his support behind Judge Roy Moore in the Alabama Senate race as the best man to send to Washington to do that.
“I’m here to support President Donald J. Trump. I’m here to support him by having folks down here support Judge Roy Moore,” Bannon told Fox News’ Sean Hannity Monday night, in his first cable TV interview since leaving the White House.
“I think Roy Moore is the guy that’s going to respect Donald Trump and fight the establishment,” said Bannon, who was campaign chair of Trump’s campaign and served as his chief strategist in the White House until last month.
Bannon spoke to Hannity live after a rally he headlined in support of Moore in Fairhope, Alabama, along with businessman Phil Robertson of Duck Dynasty fame.
The rally comes a day before Alabama Republican primary voters vote in a run-off election. Moore has a double-digit lead over Strange, by about 11 percentage points, according to the latest polling.
A number of other prominent conservative leaders also support Moore, including former Alaska Governor and 2008 vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, Laura Ingraham, Mark Levin, Dr. Michael Savage, House Freedom Caucus Chairman Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC), and Hannity himself.
Meanwhile, Trump and Vice President Mike Pence have endorsed Moore’s competitor, Sen. Luther Strange (R-AL), a former Washington lobbyist and state attorney general who was appointed to Jeff Sessions’ seat after he became attorney general.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-KY) super PAC has poured millions into electing Strange.
Bannon noted that McConnell and his cohorts in Washington have spent $30 million to elect Strange, while Moore has only spent $2 million.
“Mitch McConnell wouldn’t be majority leader if Donald Trump didn’t drag a half a dozen senators across the end line in November,” Bannon said. “It’s time for them to step up and have the back of President Trump.”
Bannon said the rally was the first time he had ever done a campaign event, donning the same bomber jacket he wore during Trump’s campaign for the event.
He acknowledged the president’s endorsement of Strange, but said his support was not in opposition to Trump, but rather, to “praise and honor” him.
“We think the best way to do that is to send … somebody [to Washington] that’s going to have Donald Trump’s back,” he said.
Hannity agreed: “I think to a certain extent Mitch McConnell does not support the president’s agenda, economic agenda, and it’s obvious. He hasn’t gotten a thing done, Steve, in eight months. We’re now in the ninth month of the Trump presidency,” he said.
“There’s no excuse for that in my opinion,” he added.
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