Bannon “doesn’t hate Jews; he hates ‘foreigners’, liberals, secularists and elites”

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Populist bias is a lot like the phrase “Make America Great Again.” Only a quarter of Trump’s supporters see those words (approvingly) as a racist dog whistle. For the great majority, their white, Christian privilege is so invisible that it just seems like a great idea. And when we simply say it’s bigoted, we sound stupid.

My fellow Jews, I’m sorry to let you down, but this is really not about us. Steve Bannon doesn’t hate us; he hates what we typologically represent. He doesn’t hate Jews; he hates “foreigners,” liberals, secularists and elites. Even “hate” isn’t the right word, since Bannon sees himself in (literally) a holy war against them, a battle to save America’s soul.

Jay Michaelson, “Sorry, Jews. Steve Bannon Is Not an Anti-Semite, and This Story Is Not About Us.”, The Forward (10 December 2016) [http://forward.com/opinion/356390/sorry-jews-steve-bannon-is-not-an-anti-semite-and-this-story-is-not-about-u/]

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