Donald Trump Gives Key Roles to Reince Priebus and Stephen Bannon

Donald Trump has made his first picks for his incoming team.

The president-elect has named Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee (RNC), as his chief of staff.

In this role, Reince Priebus, 44, will set the tone for the new White House and act as a conduit to Congress and the government.

Stephen Bannon, from the Breitbart News Network, will serve as Donald Trump’s chief strategist.

The 62-year-old stepped aside as executive chairman of Breitbart – a combative conservative site with an anti-establishment agenda that critics accuse of xenophobia and misogyny – to act as Donald Trump’s campaign chief.

In a statement released by his campaign, Donald Trump described Reince Priebus and Stephen Bannon as “highly qualified leaders who worked well together on our campaign and led us to a historic victory”.

Reince Priebus acted as a bridge between Donald Trump and the Republican party establishment during the campaign.

He is close to House Speaker Paul Ryan, a fellow Wisconsinite, who could be instrumental in steering the new administration’s legislative agenda.

During the election race, Stephen Bannon saw it as his aim to “bolster the business-like approach of Mr. Trump’s campaign”.

A former naval officer, investment banker and Hollywood producer, Stephen Bannon took over at Breitbart in 2012, when he promised to make it the “Huffington Post of the right”.

Breitbart is linked to the alternative right movement – or alt-right – which tends to reject both left-wing ideology and mainstream conservatism.

The movement often emphasizes free speech and the right to offend. Opponents call it racist, anti-Semitic and sexist.

Stephen Bannon said on November 13: “I want to thank President-elect Trump for the opportunity to work with Reince in driving the agenda of the Trump administration.

“We had a very successful partnership on the campaign, one that led to victory. We will have that same partnership in working to help President-elect Trump achieve his agenda.”

Democrat Congressman Adam Schiff called Stephen Bannon’s appointment “unsurprising but alarming”.

Adam Schiff tweeted: “His alt-right, anti-Semitic & misogynistic views don’t belong in WH.”

Elected chairman of the RNC in 2011, Reince Priebus has acted as the party’s spokesman and chief fundraiser. He said it was “truly an honor” to join Donald Trump in the White House as chief of staff.

“I am very grateful to the president-elect for this opportunity to serve him and this nation as we work to create an economy that works for everyone, secure our borders, repeal and replace ObamaCare and destroy radical Islamic terrorism,” he added.

Correspondents say one of the big challenges of the new administration will be reconciling Donald Trump with the mainstream GOP, where sharp divisions emerged during the primaries.

Both houses of Congress are under Republican control.

Donald Trump will take over at the White House on January 20, when President Barack Obama steps down after two terms in office. He defeated Hillary Clinton in last week’s presidential vote.

On November 13, Donald Trump spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping. The two agreed to meet at “an early date”, Chinese state media said.