Axios

After confirming his White House departure, Bannon told The Weekly Standard on Friday, "The Trump presidency that we fought for, and won, is over," noting that now that he is gone, it will be "that much harder" for Trump to achieve wins, like the border wall.

"We still have a huge movement, and we will make something of this Trump presidency. But that presidency is over. It'll be something else. And there'll be all kinds of fights, and there'll be good days and bad days, but that presidency is over."

Bannon predicts that moves coming from the White House are about to get much more "conventional" due to what he predicts will be a flood of moderates on the Hill. "They're not populists, they're not nationalists, they had no interest in his program."

Be smart: Axios' Jonathan Swan says Bannon's comments will enrage Trump, who already thinks Bannon took too much credit for his victory and the movement that propelled it.

Trump approved an Obama-era plan Friday to elevate Cyber Command, currently housed at the National Security Agency (NSA), to be a Unified Combatant Command.

Why it matters: This shows the U.S. is getting serious about dealing with cyber warfare. The move will also help the U.S. bolster its cyber weapons so it can match Russia's capabilities, three U.S. officials told Reuters, and improve America's ability to interfere in foreign adversaries' military programs when necessary.

Effect: This moves shakes Cyber Command up a bit and gives it some operational independence, although it's not entirely separate from the NSA — yet. Trump's announcement raised the possibility that it could eventually be entirely split off, which would grant it new powers as a standalone unit reporting directly to Defense Secretary James Mattis.

CNN's Brooke Baldwin laid out the many events that happened during President Trump's last four weeks from losing the health care fight, to firing and hiring communication's directors, to making up phone calls with the boy scouts and the Mexican president.

Investment manager and GOP megadonor Foster Friess told CNBC's Squawk Box on Friday that President Trump's decision to blame both white nationalist groups and their counter-protesters for last weekend's violence in Charlottesville was correct and the resulting uproar was "politically inspired."

The key quote: "I love Donald Trump. He's become a victim. And he's being bullied. And that's why Americans are flocking to him, because they hate [seeing] people…bullied."

Friess' influence: A supporter of conservative Christian political causes, he helped finance Rick Santorum's presidential run in 2012. He's been active in media as well, investing millions into The Daily Caller.

Mitt Romney urged in a Facebook post Friday that Trump should take "remedial action in the extreme" and "[s]tate forcefully and unequivocally that racists are 100% to blame for the murder and violence in Charlottesville."

Key excerpts:

• "Whether he intended to or not, what he communicated caused racists to rejoice, minorities to weep, and the vast heart of America to mourn."
• "He should address the American people, acknowledge that he was wrong, apologize."
• "This is a defining moment for President Trump. But much more than that, it is a moment that will define America in the hearts of our children. They are watching, our soldiers are watching, the world is watching. Mr. President, act now for the good of the country."

A day after a terrorist attack in Barcelona left 14 dead and more than 100 people injured, President Trump slammed "Obstructionist" Democrats and the courts on Twitter for making it "very difficult" for his administration to be tougher on border security:

Susan Bro — the mother of 32-year-old Heather Heyer who was killed Saturday when a man drove his car into a crowd of counter-protestors at a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville — told Good Morning America Friday that she has changed her opinion of President Trump. "You can't wash this one away by shaking my hand and saying I'm sorry," she said.

Following Trump's Monday statement, where he specifically singled out racist hate groups for being "evil," Bro initially thanked Trump for his "words of comfort." However, once Bro heard Trump's Tuesday statement, where he blamed "both sides" for the violence in Charlottesville, Bro said "I have not, and I will not" talk to the president, adding that she doesn't plan to return his phone calls.

"Battling Demons in Community Looking to Trump for Change", from AP's from Aberdeen, Wash.:

• "In Grays Harbor County, a rural community on the coast of Washington state, the rate at which people die from despair — from drugs, alcohol and suicide — is nearly twice the national average."
• "The county embraced Donald Trump's call to America's forgotten corners, and flipped Republican in a presidential election for the first time in 90 years."
• "The logging economy collapsed decades ago and was replaced by a simmering sense of injustice that outsiders took the lumber, built cities around the world and then left the community to decay."
• "Grays Harbor sank into despair. Suicides increased, drug and alcohol abuse rose. A crowded tent city of the desperate and addicted has taken over the riverbank, and some here who are fighting to stay alive worry about losing health coverage that helps them get clean."

Why it matters: "[S]ome maintain confidence that Trump will rise above the chaos to deliver on his pledge to resurrect the American dream. But others fear new depths of hopelessness if he fails."

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Thursday that Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) has his "full support" ahead of his reelection bid next year, according to an official McConnell Twitter account:

• Timing: Earlier today, Trump tweeted, "Great to see that Dr. Kelli Ward is running against Flake Jeff Flake, who is WEAK on borders, crime and a non-factor in Senate. He's toxic!"
• Context: Flake opposed Trump during his presidential campaign and in his recent book, "The Conscience of a Conservative," Flake sharply criticized Trump and condemned his party for enabling Trump's rise to the presidency.
• Why it matters: McConnell, who was reportedly livid with the way the president handled the violence in Charlottesville, has been engaged in an ongoing feud with Trump following the president's series of tweets criticizing the Majority Leader's performance. McConnell's latest statement in support of Flake only adds fuel to the fire.

The White House called it quits Thursday on a council that was expected to advise President Trump on how to best improve U.S. infrastructure, acknowledging that participation in the council could subject members to intense criticism given the controversy surrounding Trump's handling of the Charlottesville, Virginia attacks, per the WSJ.

• Why it matters: It's Infrastructure Week. And it suggests the Charlottesville fallout is having larger implications.
• The announcement: "The President's Advisory Council on Infrastructure, which was still being formed, will not move forward," a White House official said Thursday.
• Timing: The move comes just one day after Trump abruptly shut down his two key groups of outside business advisers.
• Bad optics: Canceling plans for an infrastructure council the same week that the White House is supposed to be pushing its infrastructure agenda is only intensifying what has already been a tough week for the administration.

In a series of three tweets over 14 minutes this morning, President Trump doubled down on his controversial rhetoric from his Tuesday press conference, calling the removal of Confederate statues a contributing factor to "the history and culture of our great country being ripped apart."

In a string of tweets, Sen. Lindsey Graham told President Trump that he needs to "fix this" because "history is watching us all" after Trump accused him this morning of putting forth a "disgusting lie" regarding Trump's response to the violence in Charlottesville.

A majority of Americans (52%) believe that President Trump's response to last weekend's violence in Charlottesville following a white nationalist rally was not strong enough, per an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll.

• The timing: 80% of the poll was completed after Tuesday's explosive press conference where Trump doubled down on his earlier assertion that "both sides" were responsible for the violence in Charlottesville.
• Bipartisan consensus: While most questions in the poll predictably broke down along partisan lines, a majority of Democrats and Republicans — even those who identify specifically as Trump voters — branded the car attack that resulted in the death of Heather Heyer an act of domestic terrorism.
• Another stat: A majority of Americans believe that Confederate statues should remain as a historical symbol, an opinion supported by an overwhelming majority of Republicans (86%-6%) and even a significant minority of Democrats (44%-47%).

Trump called out two GOP senators this morning on Twitter — first Lindsey Graham for being "Publicity seeking," then Jeff Flake for being "WEAK."

The Pew Research Center conducted a poll that shows citizens trust Russian President Vladimir Putin more than Trump to do the right thing for the world. That's a huge international rap on Trump.

Stack it up: Japan, South Korea, Venezuela, Mexico, Germany, France, Greece, and Turkey all have more confidence in Putin.

Keep it in perspective: Putin only got a global median of 26% confidence. And it's not all bad for Trump — Israel, Britain, Canada, Australia, Philippines, and Poland all favored Trump over Putin.

Trump criticized Lindsey Graham this morning, calling his statement on Trump's response to the Charlottesville violence a "disgusting lie," and reminding Graham about his election loss. (Keep in mind, Graham won the 2014 election in South Carolina with more than 55% of the vote.)

Lindsey Graham's comment: "President Trump took a step backward by again suggesting there is moral equivalency between the white supremacist neo-Nazis and KKK members who attended the Charlottesville rally and people like Ms. Heyer"

A day after Trump's chief strategist Steve Bannon told left-wing publication The American Prospect that we are in an "economic war" with China "and they're crushing us," China's foreign ministry spokeswoman told the press Thursday that "there is no winner in a trade war."

Hua Chunying added: Beijing hopes "the relevant people can refrain from dealing with a problem in the 21st century with a zero-sum mentality from the 19th or the 20th century."

Why it matters: The whiplash on this interview is likely just starting and could have geopolitical consequences — Bannon also mentioned he doesn't think there's a military solution for North Korea, in addition to making it sound like he was in control of staffing at the Pentagon and State Department. Both of these claims enhance the touchiness of his comments, which were already likely to mount even more pressure than already exists for Trump to fire Bannon.

A clear pattern has emerged when President Trump does something highly controversial or deeply offensive to large chunks of America. Within 24 hours, a story is leaked about how Ivanka and Jared are disappointed or tried to stop it.

Why it matters: Jared and Ivanka provided some hope for some on the left who hoped the duo would have power to dissuade President Trump from some of his most extreme promises. But the truth is, they only have so much influence. Roll the tape: