Epstein Secrets

ought up the possibility of firing everybody. Should I fire Bannon? Should I fire Reince? Should I fire McMaster? Should I fire Spicer? Should I fire Tillerson? This ritual was, everyone understood, more a pretext to a discussion of the power he held than it was, strictly, about personnel decisions. Still, i

dy with foreign policy stature and an international network had been put in HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_020053 place—even the new secretary of state designate, Rex Tillerson, had no real experience in foreign policy. To bewildered foreign secretaries, it seemed logical to see the presidentelect’s son-in-law as a figure of

any moment, and it pleased him that Bannon’s pronouncements and views would consistently be fully formed and ever available, a bracing, unified-field narrative. As well, he could turn him off,

his White House, it was Steve Bannon. Maligning Bannon was Trump’s idea of fun. When it came to Bannon, Trump rose to something like high analysis: “Steve Bannon’s problem is PR. He doesn’t understand it. Everybody hates him. Because ... look at him. His bad PR rubs off on other people.” The real question, of c

Wing, along with State Department and National Security staff, was on board for the trip: Melania Trump, Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner, Reince Priebus, Stephen Bannon, Gary Cohn, Dina Powell, Hope Hicks, Sean Spicer, Stephen Miller, Joe Hagin, Rex Tillerson, and Michael Anton. Also included were Sarah Huckabee Sand

us impressions of the man, agreed to sign on. Jim Mattis, a retired four-star general, one of the most respected commanders in the U.S. armed forces; Rex Tillerson, CEO of ExxonMobil; Scott Pruitt and Betsy De Vos, Jeb Bush loyalists—all of them were now focused on the singular fact that while he might be a pecu

every cabinet member for the next seven days through their confirmation hearings,” he said of the business-and-military 1950s-type cabinet choices. “Tillerson is two days, Session is two days, Mattis is two days... .” Bannon veered from “Mad Dog” Mattis—the retired four-star general whom Trump had nominate

rown.co.uk HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019877 For Victoria and Louise, mother and daughter HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019878 CONTENTS AUTHOR’S NOTE PROLOGUE: AILES AND BANNON 1. ELECTION DAY 2. TRUMP TOWER 3. DAY ONE 4. BANNON 5. JARVANKA 6. AT HOME 7. RUSSIA 8. ORG CHART 9. CPAC 10. GOLDMAN 11. WIRETAP 12. REPEAL AND REPL

act of Trump’s presidency only with the appointment of retired general John Kelly as the chief of staff in late July and the exit of chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon three weeks later. The events I’ve described in these pages are based on conversations that took place over a period of eighteen months with the pre

Capitol Hill in a row house known as the Breitbart Embassy that doubled as the Breitbart office—the life of a messy party. No sane person would hire Steven Bannon for a job that included making the trains run on time. OOK Ok Hence, Reince Priebus. For the Hill, he was the only reasonable chief among the cont

USE_OVERSIGHT_020114 president’s part. The daily discussion among senior staffers, those still there and those now gone—all of whom had written off Tillerson’s future in the Trump administration—was how long General Kelly would last as chief of staff. There was something of a virtual office pool, and the j

believed that the sole upside of being part of the Trump White House was to help prevent worse from happening. In early October, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s fate was sealed—if his obvious ambivalence toward the president had not already sealed it—by the revelation that he had called the president “a fucki

ge Bannon’s ouster by McMaster’s hand from the NSC. With the president promising that he would make up his mind by August, and McMaster, Mattis, and Tillerson pressing for a decision as soon as possible, Bannon- inspired media began a campaign to brand McMaster as a globalist, interventionist, and all aroun

t whatsoever of actually winning the election—was open to any and all entreaties and offers, because it had nothing to lose. Dopey Don Jr. (Fredo, as Steve Bannon would dub him, in one of his frequent Godfather borrowings) was simply trying to prove he was a player and a go-to guy. ¢ The meeting included the c

ive. “The chance that Don Jr. did not walk these jumos up to his father’s office on the twenty-sixth floor is zero,” said an astonished and derisive Bannon, not long after the meeting was revealed. “The three senior guys in the campaign,” an incredulous Bannon went on, “thought it was a good idea to mee

r had urged the ouster of many of them), any of whom might testify against him. In March alone, Gary Cohn, the president's chief economic adviser, Rex Tillerson, the secretary of state, and Andrew McCabe, the deputy director of the FBI—each man bearing the president deep contempt— were pushed from the admini

his own staff. This first phase of the most abnor- mal White House in American history ended in August 2017. with the departure of chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon and the appointment of retired general John Kelly as chief of staff. This new account begins in February 2018 at the outset of Trump's second year

nd, attorney, and tough-guy mentor, and Robert Kennedy. John F. Kennedy's brother. "He was always on my ass about Roy Cohn and Bobby Kennedy," said Steve Bannon, the political strategist who, perhaps more than anyone else, was responsible for Trump's victory. "'Roy Cohn and Bobby Kennedy; he would say. 'Whe

e and said, "going to do you a big favor. Give me your a card. Don't ask me why, just give it to me. You'll be thanking me for rest of your life:" Bannon opened his wallet and gave Priebus his American ExI card. Priebus shortly returned, handed the card back, and said, "You have legal insurance Over

Exxon Rex is a cabinet trifecta for Koch Brothers. A. And there's Exxon Rex. Any contribution from Exxon received money from Koch -- and vice versa. Rex Tillerson is worth $151 million and is leaving Exxon next year. He seems to have accepted secretary of state position. He inked a deal worth $300 billion in oi

Rebekah Mercer is part of Koch and and gave $2.5 mn to Freedom Partners. Kellyanne Conway has connections to Pence from way back and is connected to Steve Bannon through the Center for National Policy. Trump deputy campaign manager David Bossie came from Citizens United. The Director of Coalitions for Trump is

te to Gore in 2001 and completely reversed policies on tax, environment, Middle East, energy, fracking, birth control, and LGBT issues. Trump, Pence, Bannon and Koch will make a deal which will be a hybrid of religious right on moral issues and "zero intrusion from government” in commerce. Republicans alr

Exxon Rex is a cabinet trifecta for Koch Brothers. A. And there's Exxon Rex. Any contribution from Exxon received money from Koch -- and vice versa. Rex Tillerson is worth $151 million and is leaving Exxon next year. He seems to have accepted secretary of state position. He inked a deal worth $300 billion in oi

Rebekah Mercer is part of Koch and and gave $2.5 mn to Freedom Partners. Kellyanne Conway has connections to Pence from way back and is connected to Steve Bannon through the Center for National Policy. Trump deputy campaign manager David Bossie came from Citizens United. The Director of Coalitions for Trump is

te to Gore in 2001 and completely reversed policies on tax, environment, Middle East, energy, fracking, birth control, and LGBT issues. Trump, Pence, Bannon and Koch will make a deal which will be a hybrid of religious right on moral issues and "zero intrusion from government” in commerce. Republicans alr

7M) says the margin of the bipartisan vote for Blinken's confirmation is "particularly notable given" his predecessors under former President Trump, Rex Tillerson "was confirmed 55 to 43," and Mike Pompeo "took the helm of the State Department on a vote of 57 to 42." USA Today notes Senate Minority Leader McCo

ce, perhaps none was as galling to his critics, government watchdog groups and even some of his allies as the pardon of his former chief strategist, Stephen K. Bannon," who was "charged with conspiring to swindle donors to a private fund to build a wall along the Mexican border, siphoning off more than $1 million

to build a wall along the Mexican border, siphoning off more than $1 million for personal and other expenses, the indictment said." The Times adds Bannon's pardon "also left three other men who were indicted with Mr. Bannon in an unusual and unenviable predicament. None of them received pardons and so

es Secretary Tom Price was forced to resign in September 2017 due to excessive use of private charter jets and military aircraft, and Trump replaced Tillerson as Secretary of State with Mike Pompeo in March 2018 over disagreements on foreign policy.1446X43n In 2018, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt and Inte

d Duke, the Ku Klux Klan (KICK) or white supremacists.(193] After a public uproar, he disavowed Duke and the ICKKE'941 In August 2016, he appointed Steve Bannon, the executive chairman of Breitbart News—described by Bannon as "the platform for the alt-right"—as his campaign CEO [- Trump's campaign platform e

public uproar, he disavowed Duke and the ICKKE'941 In August 2016, he appointed Steve Bannon, the executive chairman of Breitbart News—described by Bannon as "the platform for the alt-right"—as his campaign CEO [- Trump's campaign platform emphasized renegotiating U.S.-China relations and free trade ag

n his own staff. This first phase of the most abnor- mal White House in American history ended in August 2017, with the departure of chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon and the appointment of retired general John Kelly as chief of staff. This new account begins in February 2018 at the outset of Trumps second year in

hner had urged the ouster of many of them), any of whom might testify against him. In March alone, Gary Cohn, the president's chief economic adviser, Rex Tillerson, the secretary of state, and Andrew McCabe, the deputy director of the FBI—each man bearing the president deep contempt— were pushed from the adminis

according to four people familiar with the discussions.” But however many people SIEGE 37 Costa had spoken to about the background machinations of Steve Ban- non, what mattered was that he had spoken directly and at length to Bannon himself, who was using the Washington Post to pitch a plan to the president.

, what mattered was that he had spoken directly and at length to Bannon himself, who was using the Washington Post to pitch a plan to the president. Bannonss three-part plan for Trump instantly made its way to the Oval Office. And the next morning, the president offered Kushner his view that he should fire