Trump lawyer says 'legal action is imminent' against Stephen Bannon

Stephen Bannon.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Former White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon received a cease and desist letter late Wednesday from President Trump's attorney, scolding him for "making disparaging statements and in some cases outright defamatory statements" about Trump and members of his family.

Earlier in the day, several explosive statements from Bannon were featured in published excerpts from Michael Wolff's upcoming book Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House — Bannon reportedly said investigators looking into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election will "crack Don Junior like an egg on national TV" and called Donald Trump Jr.'s meeting with Russians in Trump Tower "treasonous" and "unpatriotic." The White House responded by saying Bannon has "nothing to do" with Trump or his presidency and he "not only lost his job, he lost his mind."

In a statement released Wednesday night, attorney Charles Harder said he was representing Trump and Donald J. Trump for President Inc., and sent Bannon a letter stating "his actions of communicating with author Michael Wolff regarding an upcoming book give rise to numerous legal claims including defamation by libel and slander, and breach of his written confidentiality and non-disparagement agreement with our clients. Legal action is imminent."

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.