I have a Bacon number of 3. This means I worked on a movie with a girl who acted in a film with a guy who appeared in “Footloose” with Kevin Bacon. It’s frankly ridiculous how happy this makes me.
Anyone can find a connection to almost anyone on the globe in just a few short steps. These connections more often reflect happenstance acquaintance than intimate friendship, but the connection exists nonetheless. And humans thrive on even minor ties.
For instance, I’ve (briefly) met sports legends Tony Hawk, Luc Robitaille, and Bill Walton. Even though my interactions with each were momentary and insignificant — they certainly wouldn’t remember me — I’ve felt a personal connection to them ever since. Whether it be Robitaille’s cameo in “D2: The Mighty Ducks” or Hawk’s appearance on an episode of “Last Man Standing,” I always experience the rush of that “I know him!” kind of feeling. It makes you feel like you’re connected to that movie or T.V. show too. You might even say it breeds a type of loyalty.
Bonds like these can establish loyalty in all spheres, and in politics especially, that can be hazardous if not treated with caution. So if somebody seems to have particular difficulty in distancing themselves from an obviously unacceptable group or ideology, you might want to ask yourself, “What’s the connection?”
You probably already know what I’m talking about: Donald Trump’s failure to call out white supremacists, the KKK, and (most importantly, I think) the Alt-Right by name in his statement on Charlottesville on Saturday. The remarks we so vague that The Daily Stormer, a neo-Nazi website, posted shortly afterward: “He loves us all. … No condemnation at all. … God bless him.”
On Monday, Trump finally decried “the KKK, neo-Nazis, white supremacists, and other hate groups” as “repugnant to everything we hold dear as Americans.” This is a start, but there’s one group noticeably absent from his denouncement: the Alt-Right, major players in the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville. The Alt-Right has nothing to do with conservatism, contrary to many news reports, but is a disgusting, racist, and evil organization built on the pillars of fascistic white supremacy. So why can’t Trump condemn it? Because he’s too close to it.
Trump has an Alt-Right number of 1.
What’s the connection? White House Chief Strategist, Steve Bannon. Bannon is the CEO of Breibart News, the outlet he dubbed “the platform for the Alt-Right.” Ben Shapiro has stated, “I have no evidence that Bannon’s a racist or that he’s an anti-Semite. … With that said, as I wrote at The Washington Post in August, Bannon has openly embraced the racist and anti-Semitic alt-right,” which Shapiro equates to “appeasement of anti-Semitism” at the very least.
In short, Bannon’s no good, and Trump knows it. But he still won’t do anything about it — or even say anything about it, which is normally all does anyway.
For months, Trump has refused to confirm whether he still has confidence in his strategist, yet Bannon stays. Trump now reportedly suspects Bannon of releasing the infamous White House leaks, and although legendary former Communications Director Anthony “The Mooch” Scaramucci has reassured us that Trump “knows what he’s going to do with Steve Bannon,” there’s been no news of shaken relations or even Trump’s tweet-typical criticism. The Mooch further attributed Trump’s lackluster Charlottesville statement to Bannon’s influence: “You also got this sort of Bannon-bart influence in there, which I think is a snag on the president.”
That snag on the president remains, and it doesn’t appears to be going anywhere. To be clear, that doesn’t mean that Trump supports the Alt-Right or believes in its cause. But a condemnation of the Alt-Right would constitute a de facto denouncement of the man who gave it a voice. For whatever reason, Trump doesn’t seem willing to do that; his connection and apparent loyalty to Bannon are too strong.
For now, Steve Bannon appears untouchable. And unfortunately, ipso facto, the same goes for the Alt-Right.
Richie Angel is a Co-Editor in Chief of The New Guards. Follow him and The New Guards on Twitter, and check out The New Guards on Facebook.
Will America-First News Outlets Make it to 2023?
Things are looking grim for conservative and populist news sites.
There’s something happening behind the scenes at several popular conservative news outlets. 2021 was bad, but 2022 is proving to be disastrous for news sites that aren’t “playing ball” with the corporate media narrative. It’s being said that advertisers are cracking down, forcing some of the biggest ad networks like Google and Yahoo to pull their inventory from conservative outlets. This has had two major effects. First, it has cooled most conservative outlets from discussing “taboo” topics like Pandemic Panic Theater, voter fraud, or The Great Reset. Second, it has isolated those ad networks that aren’t playing ball.
Certain topics are anathema for most ad networks. Speaking out against vaccines or vaccine mandates is a certain path to being demonetized. Highlighting voter fraud in the 2020 and future elections is another instant advertising death penalty. Throw in truthful stories about climate change hysteria, Critical Race Theory, and the border crisis and it’s easy to understand how difficult it is for America-First news outlets to spread the facts, share conservative opinions, and still pay the bills.
Without naming names, I have been told of several news outlets who have been forced to either consolidate with larger organizations or who have backed down on covering certain topics out of fear of being “canceled” by the ad networks. I get it. This is a business for many of us and it’s not very profitable. Those of us who do this for a living are often barely squeaking by, so loss of additional revenue can often mean being forced to make cuts. That means not being able to cover the topics properly. Its a Catch-22: Tell the truth and lose the money necessary to keep telling the truth, or avoid the truth and make enough money to survive. Those who have chosen survival simply aren’t able to spread the truth properly.
We will never avoid the truth. The Lord will provide if it is His will. Our job is simply to share the facts, spread the Gospel, and educate as many Americans as possible while exposing the forces of evil.
To those who have the means, we ask that you please donate. We have options available now, but there is no telling when those options will cancel us. We just launched a new GiveSendGo page. We also have our GivingFuel page. There have been many who have been canceled by PayPal, but for now it’s still an option. Your generosity is what keeps these sites running and allows us to get the truth to the masses. We’ve had great success in growing but we know we can do more with your assistance.
Thank you, and God Bless!
JD Rucker
