Jeffries Attacks LaCivita and Blair Over Dodik Work
The House Democratic leader accused Trump advisers of working for Dodik's SNSD before the Bosnian elections, while Bannon and Tillis call for an end to the deal.
House Democratic leader Hakim Jeffries spoke out on October 8 about the work of Chris LaCivita and James Blair in Republika Srpska, where, according to The New York Times, they ran a campaign for Milorad Dodik’s SNSD ahead of the October 4 general elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Dodik campaign has become part of an internal fight in Washington, and people from Donald Trump’s own camp are now speaking about it publicly.
What did The New York Times report?
LaCivita and Blair stayed in Republika Srpska before the elections, the paper reports. According to its sources, each received hundreds of thousands of dollars, and the job was arranged through a Washington law firm hired by the Republika Srpska government. The government did not respond to The New York Times’ questions.
Both men hold major roles in American politics. LaCivita was one of the managers of Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign, and Blair took over MAGA Inc. after leaving his post as deputy White House chief of staff. The overseas job thus comes just as the campaign for the midterm elections, which take place in the US on November 3, 2026, is getting under way.
What did Jeffries say?
Jeffries wrote on X:
“MAGA’s top political operatives know Republicans are headed for a major defeat in the midterm elections. So they have taken their malicious schemes to the former Yugoslavia. Shameless.”
How did Republicans react?
The sharper reactions came from Trump’s own party. Steve Bannon, the former chief strategist to Donald Trump, called the two advisers fraudsters and told Politico:
“We need a forensic audit of where the money went, so the president has the information to hold people accountable.”
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene wrote that LaCivita and most MAGA-world consultants will “work for anyone, anywhere in the world,” and then asked: “Why does it suddenly bother him now?” In doing so she questioned the reason the president himself spoke up.
Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina told CNN:
“These people do not lack money. They do not have to do this. They should not be doing this.”
Asked whether they are helping Vladimir Putin in the process, he answered:
“This group is closely tied to Russia, so I seriously doubt they are doing it on purpose, but indirectly they are absolutely doing it.”
Tillis added that the work should end even if it is legal, and he left the decision to the president.
How did Trump respond?
Trump wrote on Truth Social that LaCivita and Blair are his outside associates, that they can have other clients, and that he will fire them immediately if a conflict of interest is established. On Wednesday, October 7, in the Oval Office, he said there is no conflict of interest and that he will ask them for a list of their clients, Reuters reports.
CNN White House correspondent Kristen Holmes, citing sources, reported that Trump did not know about the job or the trip earlier and learned of it while The New York Times was preparing the story. One source described him as angry, another as annoyed. Reuters, citing a Trump ally, reports that the trip to Republika Srpska at a key moment of the Republican campaign surprised and angered him.
The list of LaCivita and Blair’s clients is not public for now, and the midterm elections take place on November 3.
