US Politics
Steve Bannon staffer shreds JD Vance as MAGA infighting heats up
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Far-right media personality and former White House strategist Steve Bannon appears to be turning against Vice President JD Vance on social media as Republican infighting heats up.
Grace Chong, the CFO and COO of Bannon’s media company, has shared a series of posts on X criticizing the vice president. Vance and Chong have sparred previously, despite their shared ties to the MAGA movement. Last year, Vance called Chong a “mouth breathing imbecile” after she criticized him for missing a Senate vote.
Chong’s recent posts have centered around the unfolding Minnesota fraud cases, in which prosecutors have said that billions in federal funds supporting several state-run programs were stolen.
The cases have become a political flashpoint. Many of the defendants charged are Somali Americans, which has prompted President Donald Trump to call Minnesota a “hub of fraudulent money laundering activity” and claim that Somali immigrants “ripped off that state.”
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In a post Saturday, Vance claimed that what’s happening in the state “is a microcosm of the immigriation fraud in our system.” In response, Chong called the statement “word salad.”
Vance also shared a video posted by YouTuber Nick Shirley about the fraud case, writing: “This dude has done far more useful journalism than any of the winners of the 2024 @pulitzercenter prizes.”
Bannon responded directly to Vance’s post via the conservative social media platform Gettr, which Chong shared a screenshot of on X.
“Nick is a Patriot but American Citizens must NOT depend on the media —DoJ/FBI Joint Task Force with DHS /HHS/State Dept should have been deployed months ago so now we can perp walk or deport,” Bannon wrote.
Chong also re-shared the post herself, adding a photo of Vance with the caption: “We are going to do f****** nothing.” In another post responding to Vance’s praise of Shirley, she wrote: “Where is the DOJ/FBI Joint Task Force??”
The Independent has contacted Vance’s office for comment.
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Republican infighting, particularly over the investigation into the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, has made headlines in recent weeks.
Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, once a staunch ally of Trump, is preparing to resign next month after falling out with the president and her members of her party over several issues, including Epstein’s case.
Greene launched a new wave of criticism against the president in a New York Times profile published Monday. She outlined the start of her break with Trump, highlighting the president’s remarks at the funeral of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk.
“He did not hate his opponents. He wanted the best for them,” Trump said at the September memorial service. “That’s where I disagreed with Charlie. I hate my opponent, and I don’t want the best for them.”
Greene told the Times: “That was absolutely the worst statement… It just shows where his heart is.”
