Former Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannonwas found guilty of two Contempt of Congress charges on Friday for refusing to cooperate with the House select committee that has been investigating the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack’s subpoena.
The first charge is for failure to appear for a scheduled deposition in October 2021 which could result in up to a year in prison. The second charge is for ignoring the subpoena ordering Bannon to hand over records by October 2021. It also carries a maximum of one year behind bars.
The former White House strategist claimed Trump’s executive privilege as the reason he couldn’t testify before the committee, even though the Justice Department contradicted Bannon’s reasoning, asserting that the former president “never invoked executive privilege over any particular information or materials.”
Regardless, Trump wrote a letter waiving his executive privilege earlier this month, and Bannon agreed to be interviewed. The Justice Department responded by saying that Bannon’s “eleventh-hour” efforts should not be considered cooperation or affect the contempt charges since it has nothing to do with his refusal to comply with the subpoena since it was issued in September of last year. They added that Bannon thought he was “above the law.”
“Our government only works if people show up. It only works if people play by the rules, and it only works if people are held accountable when they do not,” Assistant U.S. attorney Molly Gaston said during closing arguments on Friday.
The jury’s decision comes after a judge repeatedly declined to delay Bannon’s trial. Bannon is expected to appeal.
