Under fire  Bannon backs off explosive comments about Trump's son
Steve Bannon
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trumpâs former strategist Steve Bannon on Sunday  backed away from derogatory comments ascribed to  him  about Trumpâs son in a new book that sparked White House outrage and could threaten Bannonâs influence as a would-be conservative power broker.
 Bannon   ousted from the White House in August  was quoted in âFire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House â by journalist Michael Wolff  as saying a June 2016 meeting with a group of Russians attended by Donald Trump Jr. and his fatherâs top campaign officials was âtreasonousâ and âunpatriotic.â
The president responded by saying  Bannon  had lost his mind  and the White House suggested the hard-right news site Breitbart News part ways with  Bannon  as its executive chairman.
 Bannon  said in a statement released on Sunday that  his  comments were directed at Paul Manafort  Trumpâs former campaign manager  and not aimed at the presidentâs son.
âI regret that my delay in responding to the inaccurate reporting regarding Don Jr. has diverted attention from the presidentâs historical accomplishments in the first year of his presidency â  Bannon  said.
Trump said last week that  Bannon  had nothing to do with  him  or  his  presidency. That scathing response left  Bannon  alienated among the more conservative factions of Trumpâs Republican Party.
 Bannon  said  he  still supported Trump  whose public break with  his  one-time strategist and use of a derisive nickname for  him   âSloppy Steve â reflected the depth of the presidentâs anger.
âMy support is also unwavering for the president and his agenda â  Bannon  said in Sundayâs statement. âI am the only person to date to conduct a global effort to preach the message of Trump and Trumpism  and I remain ready to stand in the breech for this presidentâs efforts to make America great again.â
In the book   Bannon  voiced astonishment over the meeting that Trump Jr.  the presidentâs son-in-law Jared Kushner  and Manafort attended at Trump Tower in New York with a Russian lawyer  who was said to be offering damaging information about former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton  the Democratic presidential candidate.
 Bannon  was quoted as saying  he  was certain Trump Jr. would have taken the Russians who took part in the meeting to meet  his  father.
 Bannon  did not specifically dispute the quotes  but said  his  criticism was meant for Manafort  who is being prosecuted by Special Counsel Robert Mueller as part of a probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
âMy comments were aimed at Paul Manafort  a seasoned campaign professional with experience and knowledge of how the Russians operate. He should have known they are duplicitous  cunning and not our friends â  Bannon  said.
Miller  a senior policy adviser  said the book was a âgrotesque work of fictionâ and said it was âtragic and unfortunateâ that  Bannon  made the comments in the book that  he  did.
[TGT] backed away from derogatory comments ascribed to  him  about Trumpâs son in a new book that sparked White House outrage and could threaten Bannonâs influence as a would-be conservative power broker.
  [TGT] ousted from the White House in August  was quoted in âFire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House â by journalist Michael Wolff  as saying a June 2016 meeting with a group of Russians attended by Donald Trump Jr. and his fatherâs top campaign officials was âtreasonousâ and âunpatriotic.â
The president responded by saying   [TGT] had lost his mind  and the White House suggested the hard-right news site Breitbart News part ways with   [TGT] as  [TGT]  executive chairman.
  [TGT] said in a statement released on Sunday that   [TGT]   comments were directed at Paul Manafort  Trumpâs former campaign manager  and not aimed at the presidentâs son.
âI regret that my delay in responding to the inaccurate reporting regarding Don Jr. has diverted attention from the presidentâs historical accomplishments in the first year of his presidency â   [TGT] said.
Trump said last week that   [TGT] had nothing to do with   [TGT]   or   [TGT]   presidency. That scathing response left   [TGT]   alienated among the more conservative factions of Trumpâs Republican Party.
  [TGT] said   [TGT]   still supported Trump  whose public break with   [TGT]   one-time strategist and use of a derisive nickname for  him   âSloppy Steve â reflected the depth of the presidentâs anger.
âMy support is also unwavering for the president and his agenda â   [TGT] said in Sundayâs statement. âI am the only person to date to conduct a global effort to preach the message of Trump and Trumpism  and I remain ready to stand in the breech for this presidentâs efforts to make America great again.â
In the book    [TGT]   voiced astonishment over the meeting that Trump Jr.  the presidentâs son-in-law Jared Kushner  and Manafort attended at Trump Tower in New York with a Russian lawyer  who was said to be offering damaging information about former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton  the Democratic presidential candidate.
  [TGT] was quoted as saying   [TGT]   was certain Trump Jr. would have taken the Russians who took part in the meeting to meet  his  father.
  [TGT] did not specifically dispute the quotes  but said   [TGT]   criticism was meant for Manafort  who is being prosecuted by Special Counsel Robert Mueller as part of a probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
âMy comments were aimed at Paul Manafort  a seasoned campaign professional with experience and knowledge of how the Russians operate. He should have known they are duplicitous  cunning and not our friends â   [TGT] said.
Miller  a senior policy adviser  said the book was a âgrotesque work of fictionâ and said it was âtragic and unfortunateâ that   [TGT] made the comments in the book that   [TGT]   did.