Trump leaves top strategist’s future in limbo: ‘We’ll see'

NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump is saying “we’ll see what happens” with top strategist Steve Bannon.

The president refused to express confidence in Bannon during an impromptu news conference Tuesday.

“He’s a good person. He actually gets very unfair press in that regard,” Trump said. “But we’ll see what happens with Mr. Bannon.”

Bannon was a key general election campaign adviser and has been a forceful but contentious presence in a divided White House. The former leader of conservative Breitbart News has drawn fire from some of Trump’s closest advisers, including son-in-law Jared Kushner.

Though Bannon has survived being on the outs at earlier points in the administration, the president is being pressed anew to fire him. The anti-Bannon campaign comes as Trump is facing heated criticism for not immediately condemning by name white supremacists and other hate groups after deadly violence last weekend in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Bannon once described Breitbart as “the platform for the alt-right.”

Speaking to reporters in Trump Tower, the president said Bannon is a friend and “not a racist.”