For disaffected Trump voters rankled by coastal elitism, Steve Bannon had all the right enemies.
As proof, look no further than this video of traders on Wall Street cheering the news of Bannon’s resignation on Friday. Per CNBC’s report, “Floor traders, who are overwhelmingly Republican, cheered here at the New York Stock Exchange when it was reported that Bannon was out. (Though, some later said part of that cheering was due to the departure of a colleague.).”
The article continued to explain, “They want a concerted effort to raise the debt ceiling, pass a budget resolution and then move rapidly to tax cuts. Friday’s gains is the market’s way of saying investors believe tax cuts are still alive.” In contrast, the market dipped earlier this week after erroneous reports indicated ex-Goldman Sachs executive Gary Cohn, who had long been at odds with Bannon, was set to leave the administration.
Bannon’s aggressive promotion of anti-globalist, populist policies deliberately sought to undercut the elites on Wall Street by whom struggling voters in the Rust Belt and rural America felt victimized. As traders see it, his exit leaves one less barrier to implementation of the pro-business reforms they hope Trump will enact.
For Trump voters who put him in office specifically because the president promised to promote their interests over the interests of elites, this video of Wall Street traders quite literally cheering his exit is a powerful illustration of what Bannon brought to that table.
Emily Jashinsky is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
