IL Lawmakers' Reaction To Steve Bannon Pick A Mix Of Silence & Scorn

By Stephen Gossett in News on Nov 15, 2016 9:00PM

Steve Bannon / Getty Images / Photo: Drew Angerer

Update, 8:00 p.m.:
Sen.-elect Tammy Duckworth on Tuesday evening publicly joined the call for Donald Trump to rescind his appointment of Steve Bannon.

Original:
In the days since Donald Trump tapped Steve Bannon, former executive chairman of litigious "alt-right" bastion Breitbart News, publisher of lovely work such as this, as White House chief strategist, the critical outcry from Democrats who charge that he promotes white nationalism is finally growing more robust. And while some lawmakers from Illinois have vocalized their strong disapproval of the pick, others have remained mum, including Sen. Dick Durbin and Sen.-elect Tammy Duckworth.

First, here’s what the national picture looks like: Most recently, a Congressional letter calling for Trump to withdraw the Bannon pick gathered 120 signatures from the House by 1 p.m. on Tuesday, Rhode Island Rep. David Cicilline’s office said, according to Politico.

Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) and Sen. Harry Reid represented a few of the more full-throated examples of rebuttal. “If the President-elect is serious about rejecting bigotry, hatred, and violence from his supporters, he must rescind Stephen Bannon’s appointment,” Ellison said. “This man shouldn’t be allowed to visit the White House ― let alone run it.”

The office of Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), through the Senator’s spokesperson, Adam Jentleson, said the following in a statement on Monday:

"President-elect Trump’s choice of Steve Bannon as his top aide signals that White Supremacists will be represented at the highest levels in Trump’s White House. It is easy to see why the KKK views Trump as their champion when Trump appoints one of the foremost peddlers of White Supremacist themes and rhetoric as his top aide. Bannon was ‘the main driver behind Breitbart becoming a white ethno-nationalist propaganda mill,’ according to the Southern Poverty Law Center."

Closer to Illinois, reps including Rep Mike Quigley (IL-5th) and Rep.-elect Brad Schneider (IL-10th) have answered the call to push back against the Bannon appointment.

Quigley said on Monday:

“In the aftermath of such a long, tumultuous campaign, it is the responsibility of President-elect Trump to foster a sense of unity that brings Americans together instead of pulling us further apart. However, Trump’s decision to name Steve Bannon his chief strategist sends a very different message to the American people. This disturbing choice demonstrates that the next commander in chief remains unwilling to abandon the hateful and divisive vision that he laid out during his campaign.”

“Bannon’s views have no place in our government, much less feet from the Oval Office,” added Schneider yesterday.

But so far, US Senators from Illinois have kept their thoughts closer to the vest. Sen. Durbin's office declined to comment and Sen.-elect Duckworth's spokespeople did not return a request for comment on Tuesday, when Chicagoist reached out. The possibility exists, of course, that the two are waiting and coordinating with a larger, collective counter-measure. For instance, some Senate Dems staged a "Fire Bannon" press conference on Tuesday.

Whatever the case, it seems clear that their constituencies are pushing them toward public action.

This post will be updated as the story develops.