CHINA/STEVE BANNON/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “In the White House, Stephen K. Bannon helped shape President Trump’s nationalistic rhetoric that blamed China for economic woes in the United States.
Now, less than a month after leaving the government, Mr. Bannon, the former chief strategist to Mr. Trump, has come to Hong Kong, at the invitation of a company controlled by the Chinese government, where he called President Xi Jinping of China a wise leader.
Mr. Bannon dined on Tuesday [9-12-17] with a small group of hedge fund managers and investors, and later gave a keynote address at a major investor conference, where he spoke about the rise of populism in places like the United States and the Philippines.
Mr. Bannon was invited by CLSA, a Hong Kong brokerage firm owned by Citic Securities, a Chinese investment bank. Citic, the brokerage arm of a major state-owned financial conglomerate, has deep connections to China’s political elite.
The visit was Mr. Bannon’s first high-profile overseas trip since he left the White House in August and returned to Breitbart News, the right-wing news outlet.
CLSA would not say whether it had paid Mr. Bannon for his appearance. ‘CLSA does not discuss any agreements that we might have with speakers,’ said Simone Wheeler, a spokeswoman for the firm.”
-Alexandra Stevenson, “Stephen Bannon, Outspoken Critic of China, Has Subtler Message in Hong Kong Visit,” The New York Times online, Sept. 12, 2017