Dems celebrate Bannon’s exit

Democrats are cheering the news that Stephen Bannon is out as White House chief strategist.

Bannon has long been one of the least-liked figures in the White House on the left, and many Democrats have criticized his influence.

Democrats have ripped the former leader of Breitbart News for promoting nationalist policies that they see as thinly disguised racism.

Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) said Bannon should never have been given his position by President Trump.

He never should have been in the White House to begin with and his departure is welcome news.

— Senator Bob Casey (@SenBobCasey) August 18, 2017

{mosads}At the same time, several Democrats questioned whether Bannon’s ouster would really change the White House or Trump’s policies.

“Steve Bannon’s firing is welcome news, but it doesn’t disguise where President Trump himself stands on white supremacists and the bigoted beliefs they advance,” House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said in a statement.

“President Trump’s growing record of repulsive statements is matched by his repulsive policies. Personnel changes are worthless so long as President Trump continues to advance policies that disgrace our cherished American values,” she said.

The problem was never just Steve Bannon. It was and always will be Donald Trump. https://t.co/cTBqwdwZUW

— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) August 18, 2017

While he never should have been in the WH, I’m glad Bannon is out. But he’s just one staffer & we need real action to undo the damage done https://t.co/s6qHu9lu3v

— Senator Bob Menendez (@SenatorMenendez) August 18, 2017

Personnel changes are fascinating and dramatic but let’s just remember how little of a difference it makes with this President.

— Brian Schatz (@brianschatz) August 18, 2017

Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) said he was happy that Bannon would be gone but that the departure “cannot wash away the harm he and the president have done.”

“It can’t reverse the Muslim Ban. It can’t reverse the President’s inappropriate attacks on a Federal judge of Mexican heritage. And it can’t reverse the White House’s reluctance to denounce white supremacists,” Cicilline said in a statement. 

Other House Democrats chimed in with similar messages.

#Bannon was just a start. What really have to go are the xenophobic policies & rhetoric he inspired.

— Judy Chu (@RepJudyChu) August 18, 2017

RT to tell @realDonaldTrump to make it happen TODAY and to send Gorka and Miller with him. https://t.co/8XwmMNyAdu

— Rep. Mark Pocan (@repmarkpocan) August 18, 2017

Good riddance.

— Luis V. Gutierrez (@RepGutierrez) August 18, 2017

Bannon’s departure comes nearly a week after white supremacists and neo-Nazis rallied in Charlottesville, Va., to protest the removal of a Confederate statue, spurring violence with counterprotesters. 

Various Democrats were quick to incorporate the events in Charlottesville in their reactions to Bannon, who was seen as a prominent voice in the white supremacist community, leaving. 

Firing nationalist #SteveBannon was necessary but it is not sufficient in light of @POTUS‘ immoral, unacceptable remarks on #Charlottesville

— Rep. Nydia Velazquez (@NydiaVelazquez) August 18, 2017

One thing we know: Steve Bannon is not resigning to protest the President’s apparent support for white supremacists.

— Rep. Brad Sherman (@BradSherman) August 18, 2017

Good riddance! Now we need to focus on getting the other racists out of the White House. https://t.co/CVIW6j8JLM

— Yvette D. Clarke (@RepYvetteClarke) August 18, 2017

One white supremacist out of the Trump Administration, many more to go… https://t.co/oPHLZo80iU

— Rep. Marc Veasey (@RepVeasey) August 18, 2017

Bannon’s departure comes after speculation swirled that his future at the White House was up in the air. 

The president garnered backlash from Republicans and Democrats alike for his reaction to Charlottesville, which was seen as an attempt to appease white nationalists and other far-right extremist groups.