"I'd actually like to go back to the old times of Tudor England. I'd put their heads (Dr. Anthony Fauci and FBI director Christopher Wray) on pikes, right, I'd put them at the two corners of the White House as a warning to federal bureaucrats, you either get with the program or you're gone."
– Steve Bannon. Former White House chief strategist in the administration of Donald Trump
Steve Bannon said a second term for Donald Trump should start by displaying the severed heads of Dr. Anthony Fauci and FBI director Christopher Wray on the White House "as a warning.”
Speaking on his podcast “The War Room,” Bannon – the president's former campaign strategist and senior counsellor – said putting their heads on pikes would be more suitable than a simple firing.
The Twitter account of the podcast @WarRoomPandemic was suspended after the podcast went live on Thursday.
The comments have led to speculation online that Bannon could have violated the conditions of his bail order after he was released on a $5 million bond, secured by $1.75 million in assets, on charges of fraud and money laundering. He has denied any wrongdoing.
(Justin Vallejo. “'Put their heads on pikes': Steve Bannon calls for beheading of Fauci and FBI director if Trump wins.” Independent. November 5, 2020.)
Dr. Anthony Fauci – Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient who has served Democratic and Republican presidents alike – power walks under security detail because he has received death threats over his response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“That’s sad,” he told “60 Minutes” in an October report. “The fact that a public health message to save lives triggers such venom and animosity to me that it results in real and credible threats to my life and my safety.” He said his wife and his children have faced harassment.
Resentment and Threats Come From the Top
Who emboldens Steve Bannon? Look to the White House. Donald Trump suggested that he will fire Dr. Fauci after the election, as his rift with the nation’s top infectious disease expert widens even while the nation sees its most alarming outbreak of the coronavirus since the spring.
Speaking at a campaign rally in Opa-locka, Florida, Trump expressed frustration that the surging cases of the virus that has killed more than 231,000 people in the United States this year remains prominent in the news. That sparked his supporters to begin chanting “Fire Fauci!”
“Don’t tell anybody but let me wait until a little bit after the election,” Trump replied to thousands of supporters early Monday, adding he appreciated their “advice.”
Trump had already stepped up his attacks on Biden in recent days for pledging to heed the advice of scientists in responding to the pandemic. As Trump charged that Joe Biden’s measures to slow the pandemic could keep Americans home and hurt the economy, Biden countered that the only way out of the health crisis is to heed the warnings of Dr. Fauci and other medical professionals. Biden has also been careful not to endorse another national lockdown.
(Zeke Miller. “Trump threatens to fire Fauci in rift with disease expert.” Associated Press. November 02, 2020.)
This is not the only loose talk about Dr. Fauci from Trump. In a conference call intended to rally his beleaguered campaign staff two weeks before election day, Trump slammed Dr. Anthony Fauci as a “disaster” and insisted that Americans “are tired of listening to Fauci and these idiots” who have urged a more aggressive response to the pandemic.
Trump’s broadside was just another reminder of his distrust of science and his refusal to heed either public health warnings or his political advisors. And, as we all can see, this reckless rhetoric endangers Dr. Fauci, a true hero who has served the American public health in various capacities for more than 50 years and who is universally recognized as one of the world's most frequently-cited scientists across all scientific journals.
Let's put the blame for this inhuman, vile and potentially deadly attack directly on those who threaten Dr. Fauci and the health of our nation. Trump and his administration – including madman Steve Bannon, who was arrested in August 2020 and charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and money laundering in connection to the “We Build The Wall” campaign – condone and encourage carnage in the face of their opposition.
To some, the dark and divisive words from Trump and his regime are just part of his “rough nature” and “tough talk.” However, the truth is this rhetoric energizes his fanatic base and encourages open bias and prejudice in America. This election campaign season has been gripped by once unimaginable fears of violence, sabotage and a possible refusal by Trump to cede power if he loses. These are the tools of a demogogue.
Tom McTague, London-based staff writer at The Atlantic, and co-author of Betting the House: The Inside Story of the 2017 Election, explains how Trump’s recent comments, made before all the votes have been tallied nationwide and with multiple states up for grabs, signaled a break. Now, we have an American president laying claim to an office he has not won. McTague says …
“The world watched today as the president of the United States confirmed his critics’ – and American allies’-- fears, railing baselessly against election fraud, arguing from his perch in the White House that he had won an election whose result remained in doubt.
“Donald Trump’s remarks signaled a dangerous new episode in the soap opera of his presidency. Waking up to the news that he has claimed victory – despite official and media sources, to say nothing of the Joe Biden campaign, insisting any final result remains some ways off – the world has been forced to confront its faith not just in America, but in the American idea.”
(Tom McTague. “The President Confirms the World’s Fears.” The Atlantic. November 4, 2020.)
Donald Trump has refused to say he would accept the results of the election in the event that he loses. His refusal to concede and his unsubstantiated claims of election fraud are affronts to American democracy. This is an explosive situation.
Consider the following examples of response to Trump's words and actions:
* On November 5, Facebook shut down a fast-growing pro-Trump “Stop the Steal” group – started by the conservative nonprofit Women for America – calling for "boots on the ground to protect the integrity of the vote” over “worrying calls for violence.”
The Facebook group, which attracted more than 350,000 members and nearly 7,000 posts in two days, was being used to organize protests with the rallying cry that Democratic challenger Joe Biden was trying to steal the election. It was named after a hashtag weaponized by President Donald Trump and his allies to boost unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud that could delegitimize a Biden win.
* In Detroit on November 4, officials blocked dozens from entering a vote tally room spurred by unfounded claims that the vote count in Michigan was fraudulent. The troup tried to push their way into a vote counting center as part of an effort to challenge and disrupt ballot counting.
* Another group of 300 Trump supporters – some of them armed – gathered on November 4 at the Arizona Capitol and Maricopa County elections center in Phoenix to demand election workers keep counting ballots. Clint Hickman, the Republican chairman of Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, and Democratic supervisor Steve Gallardo issued a joint statement expressing concern about how misinformation had spread about the integrity of the election process.
Trump's message has resonated with right-wing extremist and self-styled militia groups that have continued to spread conspiracy theories about how Democrats planned to rig the election. What may happen remains to be seen.
(Jessica Guynn. “Facebook shuts down pro-Trump 'Stop the Steal' group over 'worrying calls for violence.'” USA Today. November 05, 2020.)
To close, in a country where just 24% of Trump supporters since August view the coronavirus as a “very important” issue (Pew Research, October 2020), where the president publicly makes unfounded claims of cheating in the election, and where Trump supporters are prone to believe Trump's lies and deceit, we all should take extra precautions. A mood of retaliation from Trump supporters to the election results and to scientific advice from medical officials pervades the nation.
Fuck Steve Bannon and his hateful comments. He is a common criminal – a thief, a conman, a racist, and a little puppy dog who supports and feeds Trump's narcissistic interests of wealth and political power. Bannon's bullshit “War Room” is nothing but propaganda in the name of division and White Nationalism. His threatening words about putting Dr. Fauci's “heal on a pike” are nothing but blustering and bullying compensation for his own manly inadequacies and his lack of influence. Bannon needs to crawl back under his rock and stay there.
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