Steve Bannon’s Ideological Ties to Russia

Updated | These days, having any sort of ties to Moscow is politically toxic in Washington. Recent reports indicate President Donald Trump may have borrowed Russian money to keep his property empire afloat—while several investigations are underway into alleged Kremlin interference in the U.S. presidential election.

Trump’s chief strategist, Steve Bannon, hasn’t been implicated in any of the ongoing probes. But Bannon does have ideological ties to Russia—and arguably they’ve had a profound impact on the administration’s relationship with the Kremlin.

At least until now. In early April, Bannon was booted off Trump’s National Security Council in a White House coup that was at least with Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser,  whether to punish the regime in Damascus. Despite these setbacks, Bannon remains an influential voice in the Trump administration, and his revolutionary brand of conservatism is a powerful force in the Republican Party.