Breitbart denied permanent congressional press passes: report

Breitbart News on Monday was denied permanent congressional press passes over concerns about the news outlet’s links to a Republican mega-donor and a conservative nonprofit, according to a new report.

The U.S. Senate Daily Press Gallery, comprised of a group of five reporters all from traditional media outlets, denied Breitbart the permanent passes over its ties to Rebekah Mercer and the Government Accountability Institute, BuzzFeed reported.

The panel has granted the outlet temporary passes while it waits for additional information. 

The committee wants the right-wing news organization to clarify its links to Mercer, a Donald Trump supporter whose family has invested in the site, and the conservative nonprofit, the news outlet added.

{mosads}It reportedly asked Breitbart CEO Larry Solov last month to clarify White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon’s involvement in the news site. Bannon served as Breitbart’s executive chairman.

But Solov’s response raised more concerns, according to BuzzFeed.

BuzzFeed reports that Solov told the committee members that Breitbart is owned by founder Andrew Breitbart’s widow Susie Breitbart, unspecified members of the Mercer family and himself. New organizations are required to reveal whether they are financially tied to special interest organizations, regardless of their political views.

His response also reportedly showed that Peter Schweizer, Breitbart’s senior editor at large, and Wynton Hall, its managing editor, are both linked to the Government Accountability Institute, which Bannon co-founded with Schweizer in 2012.

The committee asked Breitbart to provide further information about the two Breitbart employees’ connections to the institute and to address whether Mercer has editorial power at Breitbart.

The committee asked Breitbart officials to provide the requested information by April 18. 

A Breitbart spokesperson did not immediately respond to BuzzFeed’s request for comment.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this story misidentified the Breitbart employees linked to the Government Accountability Institute. They are Peter Schweizer and Wynton Hall.

– Updated at on March 28 3:05 p.m.