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Julia Hahn Followed Steve Bannon To The White House & She Might Be Axed Too

by Chris Tognotti

On Friday, news broke that White House chief strategist had either been fired by President Donald Trump or had already resigned prior to the news being announced. Whatever the explanation, however, this much is clear: Steve Bannon is out. And recent reports suggest another member of his orbit may be following in his footsteps ― if you're wondering who Julia Hahn is, almost all you need to know is summed up by the fact that she's a longtime Bannon protege.

Hahn, 26, worked under Bannon at as editor at Breitbart prior to his joining the Trump campaign in the final months of the election. She ultimately joined Bannon in the Trump administration in January, signing on as a presidential special assistant, and reportedly continued to work closely with him throughout their approximately eight-month tenure in the federal government.

As detailed in a profile by Ben Terris of The Washington Post earlier this year, Hahn is a far-right opinioneer very much in the Breitbart mold, having authored a particularly caustic story late in the campaign as a deflection from the release of the infamous Access Hollywood tapes. Specifically, she attacked Paul Ryan for criticizing Trump's boasts about grabbing women's genitals instead of focusing on crimes committed by immigrants.

A brief scan of Hahn's bylines for Breitbart shows a fondness for far-right immigration takes, of the sort that have surged on the strength of Trump's wildly xenophobic and demagogic words and actions over the last couple of years ― creating an entire government agency dedicated to publicizing crimes committed by immigrants, for example.

Hahn's most recent contributions to the site are mainly articles she wrote in defense of Jeff Sessions, who at the time had been nominated, but not yet confirmed, to be attorney general. Sessions was roundly and repeatedly criticized for his record on racial justice leading up to his confirmation ― in the headline for Hahn's final Jan. 12 post, Sessions is referred to as a "populist," while Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey is labeled a "corporatist."

Although word of her firing has been reported by multiple journalists on social media, there hasn't yet been any official statement from the White House on the matter. And while it's not totally clear what her next step might be ― given the reports that Bannon may be headed back to Breitbart, it wouldn't be surprising at all to see her follow suit.