Report: Steve Bannon advised Trump to keep a "shit list" of Republicans who oppose him

Impact

When it comes to the Republicans who defy him, Donald Trump will forgive, but he won't forget. And actually, he probably won't forgive, either.

Citing anonymous Trump administration officials, the Daily Beast reported that Trump's chief strategist, Steve Bannon, has advised the president to keep a "shit list" of all the Republican lawmakers who choose to vote against the American Health Care Act during a scheduled vote on Friday.

Amid mounting evidence that GOP leadership will be unable to whip up the votes needed to pass the legislation, Trump has reportedly become incensed — prompting Bannon to suggest that he make a note of the defectors.

"[Bannon] has told the president to keep a shit list on this," one official told the Daily Beast. "He wants a running tally of [the Republicans] who want to sink this... Not sure if I'd call it an 'enemies list,' per se, but I wouldn't want to be on it."

While the anonymous officials did not offer the Daily Beast specifics on any punitive measures the Trump administration planned to exercise against the conservatives on the list, one aide allegedly described the strategy as a "hit list."

The report also notes that Bannon allegedly urged Trump to "burn the boats" — a reference to a military strategy that leaves troops with only two options: Win on the shores, or die trying.

Sources also told the Daily Beast that both Trump himself and Mick Mulvaney, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, have cosigned the idea of the list.

The notoriously thin-skinned president has already repeatedly alluded to the possibility that he plans to retaliate politically against all who oppose him.

In February, Trump joked that he planned to "destroy" the career of a Texas state senator who had introduced a bill requiring that a suspect be convicted before the state could seize their assets.

On Tuesday, Trump made similar threats to Rep. Mark Meadows, the chairman of the far-right House Freedom Caucus, who has gone on record saying that he cannot support the health care bill.

"Mark, I'm coming after you," Trump joked.