Jan. 6 Committee Moves To Hold Steve Bannon In Criminal Contempt

The House Select Committee investigating the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol by a mob of then-President Donald Trump’s followers will hold former White House strategist Steve Bannon in criminal contempt for brushing off a subpoena.

Bannon, who was pardoned by Trump last year on charges of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and money laundering as part of a U.S.-Mexico border wall fundraising scheme, refused to testify or provide documents to the committee, where he was scheduled to appear Thursday.

Bannon’s attorneys said he’d wait until Congress hashed out executive privilege concerns with Trump or after it was settled in court, CNN reported. Bannon no longer worked in the White House on Jan. 6, but he reportedly had stayed in contact with Trump and White House officials. Trump fired Bannon in 2017, about eight months after he took office.

In a statement, committee chair Rep. Bennie Thompson accused Bannon of “hiding behind the former President’s insufficient, blanket, and vague statements regarding privileges he has purported to invoke. We reject his position entirely.”

“The Select Committee will not tolerate defiance of our subpoenas, so we must move forward with proceedings to refer Mr. Bannon for criminal contempt,” added Thompson, who announced plans to vote Tuesday evening on adopting a contempt report.

“The Select Committee will use every tool at its disposal to get the information it seeks, and witnesses who try to stonewall the Select Committee will not succeed. All witnesses are required to provide the information they possess so the Committee can get to the facts. We’re grateful to the many individuals who are voluntarily participating and to witnesses who are complying with subpoenas, including several who met the deadline to begin producing materials to the Select Committee. We’re moving ahead quickly to get answers for the American people about what happened on January 6th and help secure the future of American democracy.”

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