Stephen Bannon, the chief strategist for Donald Trump and former head of Breitbart News, excoriated media outlets in an interview with the New York Times.
“The media should be embarrassed and humiliated and keep its mouth shut and just listen for a while,” Bannon told the Times.
“I want you to quote this,” Bannon added. “The media here is the opposition party. They don’t understand this country. They still do not understand why Donald Trump is the president of the United States.”
News outlets have also been “humiliated” by the outcome of the election, while describing media outlets as “the opposition party,” rather than the Democrats. “The elite media got it dead wrong, 100 percent dead wrong,” he added, describing their loss as “a humiliating defeat that they will never wash away, that will always be there.”
In the interview, Bannon specifically mentioned the New York Times and the Washington Post. “The paper of record for our beloved republic, The New York Times, should be absolutely ashamed and humiliated,” Bannon said. “They got it 100 percent wrong.”
“The mainstream media has not fired or terminated anyone associated with following our campaign,” Bannon noted. “Look at the Twitter feeds of those people: They were outright activists of the Clinton campaign.”
“That’s why you have no power,” he added. “You were humiliated.”
The Times noted that Bannon spoke in calm yet blunt tones.
When he was asked about if press secretary Sean Spicer lost credibility with media outlets, he laughed
“Are you kidding me?” he told the paper. “We think that’s a badge of honor. ‘Questioning his integrity’—are you kidding me? The media has zero integrity, zero intelligence, and no hard work.”
“You’re the opposition party,” he said. “Not the Democratic Party. You’re the opposition party. The media’s the opposition party.”
Among journalists, his statements were met with derision and worry. CNN’s Jake Tapper responded with a smile, “No.”
Added CNN’s Christine Amanpour: “Sorry, what country are we in?”
