NATION/WORLD
Thursday, January 4, 2018
East Oregonian
Page 7A
Trump blasts Bannon over book, says ex-aide ‘lost his mind’
By JILL COLVIN
and JONATHAN LEMIRE
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — President
Donald Trump launched a scathing
attack on former top adviser Steve
Bannon on Wednesday, responding
to a new book that portrays Trump
as an undisciplined man-child who
didn’t actually want to win the
White House and quotes Bannon
as calling his son’s contact with a
Russian lawyer “treasonous.”
Hitting back via a formal White
House statement rather than a
more-typical Twitter volley, Trump
insisted Bannon had little to do
with his victorious campaign and
“has nothing to do with me or my
Presidency.”
“When he was fired, he not
only lost his job, he lost his mind,”
Trump said.
It was a blistering attack against
the man who helped deliver the pres-
idency to Trump. It was spurred by
an unflattering new book by writer
Michael Wolff that paints Trump as
a leader who doesn’t understand the
weight of the presidency and spends
his evenings eating cheeseburgers
in bed, watching television and
talking on the phone to old friends.
White House aides were blind-
sided when early excerpts from
“Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump
White House” were published
online by New York magazine and
other media outlets ahead of the
Jan. 9 publication date.
The release left Trump “furious”
and “disgusted,” said White House
Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee
Sanders, who complained that the
book contained “outrageous” and
“completely false claims against
the president, his administration
and his family.”
Asked what specifically had
prompted the president’s fury with
Bannon, she said: “I would certainly
think that going after the president’s
son in an absolutely outrageous and
unprecedented way is probably not
the best way to curry favor with
anybody.”
In the book, an advance copy
of which was provided to The
Associated Press, Bannon is quoted
as describing a June 2016 meeting
at Trump Tower between Donald
Trump Jr., Trump campaign aides
and a Russian lawyer as “trea-
sonous” and “unpatriotic.” The
meeting has become a focus of
federal and congressional investi-
gators.
Bannon also told Wolff the
investigations into potential collu-
sion between Russia and Trump
campaign officials would likely
focus on money laundering.
“They’re going to crack Don
Junior like an egg on national TV,”
Bannon was quoted as saying in
Trump disbands voter
fraud commission
AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File
In this Jan. 28, 2017 file photo, President Donald Trump speaks on the phone with Prime Minister
of Australia Malcolm Turnbull, with then-National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, center, and then-
chief strategist Steve Bannon, right, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington.
one section that was first reported
by The Guardian.
A spokeswoman for Bannon
did not immediately respond to a
request for a comment. Trump Jr.
lashed out in a series of tweets,
including one that said Andrew
Breitbart, the founder of the Breit-
bart News site that Bannon now
runs, “would be ashamed of the
division and lies Steve Bannon is
spreading!”
Bannon, who was forced out of
his White House job last summer,
was not surprised or particularly
bothered by the blowback,
according to a person familiar with
his thinking but not authorized
to speak publicly on the matter.
That person said Bannon vowed
on Wednesday to continue his war
on the Republican establishment
and also predicted that, after a
cooling-off period, he’d continue
to speak with Trump, who likes
to maintain contact with former
advisers even after he fires and
sometimes disparages them.
Sanders said Bannon and Trump
last spoke in the first part of last
month.
The former-and-current Breitbart
News head has told associates
that he believes Trump has been
ill-served by some his closest
allies, including eldest son Don Jr.
and Jared Kushner, the president’s
son-in-law. Bannon believes they
have exposed Trump to the Russia
probe that could topple his presi-
dency and that Trump would be able
to accomplish more without them
So far, there is no indication that
Bannon is being investigated by
Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
But the House intelligence
committee has invited him, along
with former Trump campaign
manager Corey Lewandowski, for
a closed-door interview as a part
of the panel’s investigation into
Russian meddling in the 2016 elec-
tion, according to a person familiar
with the invitation.
Trump, up until Wednesday, had
been complimentary of Bannon,
saying in October that the two
“have a very good relationship”
and had been friends for “a long
time.”
In the book, Bannon also speaks
critically of Trump’s daughter
and White House adviser, Ivanka,
calling her “dumb as a brick.”
“A little marketing savvy and
has a look but as far as under-
standing actually how the world
works and what politics is and what
it means — nothing,” he is quoted
saying.
New York magazine also
published a lengthy adaptation of
the book on Wednesday, in which
Wolff writes that Trump believed
his presidential nomination would
boost his brand and deliver “untold
opportunities” — but that he never
expected to win.
It says Trump Jr. told a friend
that his father looked as if he’d
seen a ghost when it became clear
he might win. The younger Trump
described Melania Trump as “in
tears — and not of joy.”
The first lady’s spokeswoman,
Stephanie Grisham, disputed that,
saying Mrs. Trump supported her
husband’s decision to run, encour-
aged him to do so and was happy
when he won.
“The book is clearly going to be
sold in the bargain fiction section,”
Grisham said in a statement.
Wolff was generally granted
access to the White House with a
‘blue badge” instead of the tradi-
tional press badge, giving him wide
access to the West Wing, according
to officials who spoke on condition
of anonymity in order to discuss
internal protocol.
One former White House official
said Wolff was known to camp out
for hours in the West Wing lobby
after meetings, sitting on a sofa as
he waited to talk to staffers passing
by.
Wolff said in an author’s note
that the book was based on more
than 200 interviews, including
multiple conversations with the
president and senior staff. But
Sanders said Wolff “never actually
sat down with the president” and
had spoken with him just once,
briefly, by phone, since Trump had
taken office.
She also said the vast majority
of interviews Wolff conducted with
other White House officials were
done at Bannon’s request.
Bannon’s comments in the book
are just his latest published criticism
of the president and his family. In
a Vanity Fair piece late last year,
he was quoted telling friends and
advisers that Trump had “lost a
step” since his swearing-in and was
“like an 11-year-old child.”
WASHINGTON (AP) —
President Donald Trump has
signed an executive order
disbanding his controversial
voter fraud commission amid
infighting, legal threats and
information denials.
The White House blamed the
decision, announced Wednesday
evening, on a refusal by more
than a dozen states to comply
with the commission request for
reams of personal voter data,
including voters’ names, voting
histories and party affiliations.
“Rather than engage in
endless legal battles at taxpayer
expense, today President
Donald J. Trump signed an
executive order to dissolve the
Commission, and he has asked
the Department of Homeland
Security to review its initial
findings and determine next
courses of action,” White House
spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee
Sanders said in a statement.
Critics saw the commission
as part of a conservative
campaign to make it harder for
poor people and minority voters
to access the ballot box, and to
justify unfounded claims made
by Trump that voter fraud cost
him the popular vote in 2016.
Trump has repeatedly
alleged, without evidence, that
3 million to 5 million people
voted illegally in the 2016
election, delivering the popular
vote to his Democratic rival,
Hillary Clinton.
Past studies have found voter
fraud to be exceptionally rare.
Critics also viewed the
commission as an attempt
to distract from the ongoing
investigations into Russian
election meddling and potential
collusion between Moscow
and Trump campaign aides.
The intelligence community
concluded that the Russian
government mounted a
campaign to help Trump win.
At least a dozen states,
plus Washington, D.C., had
rebuffed the commission’s
request for voter data, citing
privacy concerns and a fear that
complying would legitimize
the idea that voter fraud is
widespread.
While there have been
isolated cases of people voting
illegally, and many voter rolls
often contain outdated data,
there is no evidence voter fraud
is a widespread problem in the
United States or has impacted
election results.
BRIEFLY
Cross-border communications
reopened between Koreas
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North
Korean leader Kim Jong Un reopened a key
cross-border communication channel with
South Korea for the first time in nearly two
years Wednesday as the rivals explored the
possibility of sitting down and talking after
months of acrimony and fears of war.
The sudden signs of easing hostilities,
however, came as President Donald Trump
threatened Kim with nuclear war in response
to his threat earlier this week.
In his New Year’s address Monday, Kim
said he was willing to send a delegation to
next month’s Winter Olympics in South
Korea. But he also said he has a “nuclear
button” on his desk and that all U.S. territory
is within striking distance of his nuclear
weapons, comments Trump latched onto
Tuesday when he boasted of a bigger and
more powerful “nuclear button” than Kim’s.
The two leaders exchanged crude insults
last year, as the North received new U.N.
sanctions over its sixth and most powerful
nuclear test explosion and a series of
intercontinental ballistic missile launches.
The recent softening of contact between
the rival Koreas may show a shared interest
in improved ties, but there’s no guarantee
tensions will ease. There have been repeated
attempts in recent years by the rivals to talk,
but even when they do meet, the efforts often
end in recriminations and stalemate.
Outside critics say Kim may be trying to
use better ties with South Korea as a way to
weaken the alliance between Washington and
Seoul as the North grapples with toughened
international sanctions over its nuclear and
missile programs.
Manafort sues Mueller,
Justice Department
WASHINGTON (AP) — President
Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman
sued special counsel Robert Mueller and the
Justice Department on Wednesday, saying
prosecutors had overstepped their bounds
by charging him for conduct that he says is
unrelated to Russian interference in the 2016
presidential election.
The lawsuit by Paul Manafort, filed in
federal court in Washington, is the most
direct challenge to date to Mueller’s legal
authority and the scope of his mandate as
special counsel. It comes amid Republican
allegations of partisan bias among members
Yonhap via AP
A South Korean government official checks the direct communications hotline to
talk with the North Korean side at the border village of Panmunjom in Paju, South
Korea, Wednesday.
of Mueller’s team, which for months has been
investigating whether the Trump campaign
coordinated with Russia to influence the
outcome of the U.S. election.
The lawsuit also takes aim at Deputy
Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who
is overseeing Mueller’s investigation and
recently said he was satisfied that the former
FBI director was staying within the scope of
his authority.
Manafort was indicted in October on
charges, including money-laundering
conspiracy, related to his lobbying work on
behalf of a Russia-friendly Ukrainian political
party. He has pleaded not guilty. He is one of
four Trump associates — including former
national security adviser Michael Flynn — to
be charged so far in Mueller’s investigation.
GOP’s Senate majority
shrinks with Jones sworn in
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrat
Doug Jones of Alabama was sworn
into office Wednesday, shrinking the
Senate’s Republican majority and leading
lawmakers of both parties to plead for more
bipartisanship as Congress tackles pressing
issues in advance of the 2018 midterm
elections.
Vice President Mike Pence administered
the Senate’s oath of office to Jones, the first
Alabama Democrat elected to the Senate in
a quarter century, and to former Minnesota
Lt. Gov. Tina Smith, who was appointed to
replace Sen. Al Franken, who resigned amid
allegations of sexual misconduct.
Two former vice presidents, both
Democrats, were there to support the Senate’s
newest members as the GOP majority
narrowed to 51-49. In future party-line votes,
Republicans cannot afford more than one
defection.
Jones was escorted to the Senate chamber
by former Vice President Joseph Biden, who
had headlined Jones’ campaign kickoff rally.
Jones defeated Republican Roy Moore in
a special election rocked by allegations of
sexual misconduct against Moore.
Former Vice President Walter Mondale,
along with Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn.,
escorted Smith to the Senate floor. She
becomes the 22nd woman currently serving
in the Senate, a record.
Mormon church president
Thomas S. Monson dies at 90
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Thomas
S. Monson, considered a prophet by nearly
16 million Mormons worldwide, has died
at the age of 90 after a nearly a decade as
church president. He expanded the church’s
reach and its transparency and was known
for promoting humanitarian causes despite
leading a divisive fight against gay marriage.
Monson died Tuesday night at his home
in Salt Lake City, according to church
spokesman Eric Hawkins.
Monson spent more than five decades
serving in top church leadership councils
— making him a well-known face and
personality to multiple generations of
Mormons.
A church bishop at the age of 22, the
Salt Lake City native became the youngest
church apostle ever in 1963 at the age of 36.
He served as a counselor for three church
presidents before assuming the role of the
top leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints in February 2008.
As president of the nearly 16 million-
member religion, Monson was considered
a prophet who led the church through
revelation from God in collaboration with two
top counselors and members of the Quorum
of the Twelve Apostles.
Washington sues Motel 6 for
giving guest information
SEATTLE (AP) — Washington’s attorney
general sued Motel 6 on Wednesday, alleging
the national budget chain disclosed the private
information of thousands of its guests to U.S.
immigration authorities in violation of the
state consumer protection law.
Attorney General Bob Ferguson said motel
employees divulged the names, birthdates,
driver’s license numbers, license plate
numbers and room numbers of at least 9,150
guests to U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement agents without a warrant. At
least six people were detained on or near
motel property during a two-year period.
Motel 6 was aware that the agents used the
guest registry information to single out guests
based on their national origin in violation
of Washington state’s anti-discrimination
law, the state’s lawsuit filed in King County
Superior Court alleged.
Ferguson said at least six Motel 6 locations
in the state — all in the Puget Sound region
and corporate-owned — provided the
information without guests’ knowledge or
consent. Washington’s Supreme Court makes
it clear that guest registry information is
private, he said, and Motel 6 violated the law
each time it gave out private information.