In one of the more ridiculous and memorable moments of last year's election campaign, Hillary Clinton accused Donald Trump of being a puppet of Vladimir Putin.

But if the last two weeks have been any indication, the man really pulling the strings is only a few doors down from the Oval Office.

Steve Bannon was the brains behind Trump's unlikely election win, and was rewarded with a plum position in the White House for his service.

Armed with the broad title of Chief Strategist and Senior Counselor, Bannon has quickly become the second most powerful man in America – at least.

"In case it wasn't clear yet, Steve Bannon is our President," GQ magazine titled a scathing editorial earlier today.

"If Donald Trump has shown anything during his first eleven days in office, it's that he's a coward with no ideas of his own, who is more than happy to be a puppet for the true president of the United States: Steve Bannon."

Steve Bannon (far right) as Donald Trump signs an executive order. (AP)

The editorial came after Trump made the unprecedented move to appoint Bannon to the National Security Council, the body formed in 1947 to advise the president on national security and foreign policy.

Bannon was slotted into the Council at the expense of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the highest-ranking military officer in the US, as well as the Director of National Intelligence.

The appointment is unprecedented. No political advisor has ever served on the Council and it flies in the face of President Harry Truman's intention when he formed it in 1947.

The move came as a resounding shock to Washington DC, not just for removing the only intelligence and military voices on the council, but to replace them with a man with no prior government experience.

It showed the substantial clout Bannon has in the White House; not only that Trump listens to his advice but that he is also shutting out dissenting opinions.

But it is the work Bannon is doing outside of the Council that is troubling Washington insiders the most.

Typically executive orders are made in consultation with the relevant Cabinet offices, but the New York Times reported Trump's sweeping visa ban was done without the involvement of the Secretary of Homeland Security.

Secretary John Kelly was briefed about the executive order as Trump himself was signing it on television.

Meanwhile, Defence Secretary John Mattis was told about the order only a few hours earlier.

Rather than involving the relevant departments, the executive order was drafted in Bannon's office during the transition, ready to be signed in the days after Trump took office.

It's an extraordinary display of power and influence from a man with no prior government experience.

"We've never witnessed a political aide move as brazenly to consolidate power as Stephen Bannon — nor have we seen one do quite so much damage so quickly to his putative boss’s popular standing or pretenses of competence," a New York Times editorial read.

After leaving the Navy in the 1980s, Bannon began work at Goldman Sachs as an investment banker before striking out on his own.

Along the way he acquired a financial stake in five television shows, including the insanely profitable Seinfeld.

After making a series of political documentaries, he became the chair of Breitbart, the fringe conservative website for readers who thought Fox News was too left-wing.

There's little wonder that Glenn Beck, once considered Fox News' most conservative commentator, was so scathing of Bannon.

"He's a nightmare and he's the chief adviser to the president of the United States now," Beck said.

"He is a terrifying man. A terrifying man."

Beck has always shown himself to be prone to exaggeration, but Bannon's comments to the Hollywood Reporter last year don't offer a great deal of comfort.

"Darkness is good," he said.

"Dick Cheney. Darth Vader. Satan. That's power. It only helps us when they (liberals) get it wrong. When they're blind to who we are and what we're doing."