It’s been nearly two weeks since Jeffrey Lord, the former Reagan administration official and pro-Trump political commentator, was sacked from his contributor job at CNN.
The abrupt firing, officially due to Lord tweeting “Sieg Heil!,” prompted a phone call of support from Steve Bannon, then President Donald Trump’s chief strategist. Now Bannon has lost his job, too. And as he settles back at the conservative website Breitbart, were he once again is head honcho, he may end up bringing Lord along with him.
The Daily Beast can confirm that Lord is eyeing Breitbart, one of the most influential Trump-boosting outlets in the country, as a post-CNN gig. Two sources familiar with the situation tell The Daily Beast that, post-firing, Breitbart reached out to Lord regarding writing for the site, for a contributorship or a potentially steadier job.
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Last week, Lord emailed The Daily Beast that he was indeed actively exploring post-CNN media options, stating that he had “three possibilities already! LOL!” and was “taking a week off and then back to figuring out the future.” Lord did not respond to follow-up questions regarding the specifics of said options.
Should it materialize, Lord’s move to Breitbart would come amid a period of transition for the site. Bannon has pledged to further weaponize Breitbart as a vehicle for his brand of right-wing populist-nationalist politics—and against that movement’s political foes, including the perceived enemies working in Trump’s administration itself.
One well-placed source notes that discussions between Breitbart and Lord are in the “preliminary stage” at the moment. But Lord knows many staffers at the site, due to his many years working in conservative media, long before the rise of Trumpism. And the site has often praised his work. (Lord is already a contributing writer at Newsbusters, for instance.)
Lord has appeared on Breitbart’s radio program, has been quoted as an expert by Breitbart’s political editor Matthew Boyle, and has known Bannon for years. Bannon actually asked Lord several years ago to write for Breitbart, after the two had appeared together on Fox News’s equally pro-Trump host Sean Hannity’s show, according to a source familiar with the conversation.
Breitbart’s publicist declined to comment on this story.
Outside of a move to Breitbart, Lord is exploring other options in conservative media—which could prove more limited than a CNN alumnus might expect.
On the day of Lord’s sudden firing from CNN over a Nazi-related joke, Fox News told NPR media correspondent David Folkenflik that it wouldn’t be hiring the now-ex CNN hand.
One America News Network, a pro-Trump cable channel pitching itself as an aspiring Fox News rival, has an opening after recently firing former Trump campaign manager and ex-CNN contributor Corey Lewandowski. But Robert Herring, the network’s chief executive, told The Daily Beast on Monday that the channel was “obviously not” looking to land Lord as a paid on-air contributor.
Asked why that was obvious, Herring simply said he didn’t know who Lord is.
