Steve Bannon calls for 'exorcism' at White House after Biden honors George Soros with Medal of Freedom
President Joe Biden is receiving widespread criticism for giving billionaire George Soros the Presidential Medal of Freedom in light of his work to elect prosecutors deemed by critics as being “soft” on crime.
In a statement published Saturday, the Biden administration announced 19 recipients the president intended to award with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor, at a ceremony later that day.
Among the names on the list was George Soros, described as “an investor, philanthropist, and founder of the Open Society Foundations” who “has focused on global initiatives that strengthen democracy, human rights, education, and social justice” through “his network of foundations, partners and projects in more than 120 countries.”
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As explained by the White House, the Presidential Medal of Freedom is “presented to individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavors.”
While Biden characterized Soros and the other recipients as “great leaders who have made America and the world a better place,” the presentation of the Presidential Medal of Freedom to the progressive billionaire did not sit well with critics of his administration.
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., published a post on X Saturday condemning the recognition of Soros as “outrageous but not surprising.” Alluding to Soros’ support for progressive district attorneys, Cotton cited Soros receiving the honor as evidence that “Democratic politicians support criminals more than cops” and “want violent criminals back on the streets.”
Steve Bannon, a former advisor to President-elect Donald Trump during the early part of his first administration, reacted to Soros receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom on his “War Room” podcast Saturday. “The demon himself is going to be in the White House,” Bannon remarked.
“The first thing President Trump should do now, given what Biden’s doing today with Soros and [former Secretary of State and first lady Hillary] Clinton, is we should have an exorcism,” he added. “Let’s have an exorcism. You got to drive the demons out, the demon spirit of George Soros.”
Bannon encouraged Catholic priests and other religious figures to participate in the exorcism. Elon Musk, the CEO of X, SpaceX and Tesla, who is expected to have a non-official role in the forthcoming Trump administration, previously elaborated on the concerns and criticisms of Soros from the political right during an appearance on “The Joe Rogan Experience” last year.
“In my opinion, he fundamentally hates humanity,” Musk said. “He’s doing things that erode the fabric of civilization, you know, getting DAs elected who refuse to prosecute crime. That’s part of the problem in San Francisco and LA and a bunch of other cities.”
A 2024 report published by the Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund revealed that Soros has spent more than $40 million to elect district attorney candidates across the United States and that 75 of them remained in office at the time of the report’s publication. A 2023 report compiled by the Capital Research Center documented rising crime rates in several of the jurisdictions that had elected Soros-backed DAs as prosecutors.
Backlash to rising crime rates that critics attributed to “soft” treatment given to criminals by many of the DAs backed by Soros led many of them to lose their reelection bids, which took place after the publication of one or both reports. Soros-backed prosecutors who lost reelection include several from deep-blue jurisdictions.
In Los Angeles County, California, the largest county in the U.S. that is home to the city of Los Angeles, Soros-backed District Attorney George Gascon lost reelection by 23 points to challenger Nathan Hochman last year. According to the Capital Research Center, following Gascon’s initial election as district attorney, “Homicide rates soared, organized shoplifting sprees ravaged the city, trains were stopped and ransacked by mobs of looters.”
Buta Biberaj, who served as Commonwealth’s Attorney in Loudoun County, Virginia, narrowly lost her 2023 reelection bid to challenger Bob Anderson. The Capital Research Center noted how Biberaj “made headlines for personally seeking jail time for Scott Smith, a father who was arrested for misdemeanor disorderly conduct at a Loudoun County School Board meeting while protesting the school board’s cover-up of his 14-year-old daughter’s rape” by a trans-identified male student in a girls’ bathroom.
In Alameda County, California, home to the city of Oakland, Soros-backed District Attorney Pamela Price was ousted in a recall election last year. The Capital Research Center report outlined how Price once told a crowd, “We have to defund police, defund prosecutors, and divest from prisons,” while she reduced the charges against a man who murdered three people in a shopping mall to one count of voluntary homicide and personal use of a gun because she believed the killer “was just 18 then and is very sorry.”
Ryan Foley is a reporter for The Christian Post. He can be reached at: ryan.foley@christianpost.com
