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Democrats on Capitol Hill are pushing back against Donald Trump’s appointment of White nationalist Steve Bannon as chief strategist and senior White House advisor.

A total of 169 House Democrats signed a letter addressed to President-elect Trump, calling for him to cut ties with Bannon. A portion of the letter states: 

“Your appointment of Stephen Bannon, whose ties to the White Nationalist movement have been well-documented, directly undermines your ability to unite the country. We strongly believe that Mr. Bannon’s appointment will not allow the country to heal and come together as one.

As one of your top advisers, the White House chief strategist will help set the tone for your administration–we strongly urge you to rescind this appointment immediately and build a diverse White House staff who are committed to the core American values of inclusiveness, diversity and tolerance.”

North Carolina Democratic State Rep. Alma Adams joined Roland Martin during Thursday morning’s edition of NewsOne Now to discuss the Democratic response to Bannon’s appointment and the signal his selection sends to the nation.

“It certainly sends a very negative tone to the country,” Adams said. “It’s already in turmoil as far as I’m concerned. I’m getting a lot of calls from my district, a lot of emails asking that the President-elect replace him and not appoint him to come into the White House.” 

Gauging the response from her constituents, Rep. Adams said, “People are very concerned – we have a divided nation right now and of course, Bannon is going to create a greater problem.”

She added, “His rhetoric has been derogatory, divisive, and I just don’t think that’s the proper tone the President-elect needs to be setting for a country, and his selection of this person certainly does that.”

Bannon is not the only controversial appointment to the Trump administration. There are reports that the President-elect has chosen Kris Kobach, Kansas’ Secretary of State and an allegedly “virulent” anti-immigration activist, to become a member of Team Trump.

When asked if these types of appointments give her pause, Adams said, “It’s very frightening, many of the folks that I talk to, many constituents are very concerned, they’re afraid and it doesn’t appear that not only will we not have a smooth transition, but I don’t think that this is the way to move our country forward.”

Watch Roland Martin, Rep. Alma Adams, and the NewsOne Now panel discuss the formation of Team Trump in the video clip above.

PHOTO CREDIT: Getty

Watch NewsOne Now with Roland Martin, in its new time slot on TV One.

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Activist Dick Gregory Warns America About Potential Impact Of Trump’s Election

Calls Grow For Trump To Dump Racist Bannon, Build Diverse Staff  was originally published on newsone.com