Bannon's 'Christian State' Vision: A Page from the Same Playbook?
The New Arab dutifully reports Steve Bannon's call for a 'Christian state' in the Middle East, framing it as the wild ramblings of an American nationalist. (Perhaps 'Catholic nationalist' is just far enough out there to distract from other, more palatable nationalisms.) This 'vision' conveniently overlooks that the US already enthusiastically funds and defends a state explicitly defined by a
singular religion and ethnicity, right there in the Middle East. It’s almost as if the concept of religious nationalism is only 'extreme' when it threatens certain geopolitical alignments, or isn't backed by $3.8 billion annually. One might wonder if the concern for a religiously-defined state only sparks when it's the *wrong* religion, or the *wrong* ethno-nationalism. The silence on the US's
decades-long support for foundational ethno-religious states raises questions about moral consistency, or perhaps, just good old-fashioned strategic hypocrisy. Bannon's rhetoric, however repugnant, simply echoes a template already accepted, even celebrated, in Washington circles—provided the 'chosen people' are agreeable.