The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed Stephen K. Bannon’s final attempt to delay his July 1 deadline to report to prison, leaving the former Trump political strategist and right-wing podcaster facing a court order to surrender to a low-security federal prison while he appeals his contempt of Congress conviction. The high court’s decision came in a brief order: “The application for release pending appeal presented to The Chief Justice and by him referred to the Court is denied.” The court did not provide reasons, but lower courts had determined Bannon failed to raise substantial legal questions regarding his two-count conviction for refusing to provide documents or testimony to a House committee investigating the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Bannon had sought an emergency stay on June 21 after his D.C.-based trial judge and the appellate judges rejected similar requests. Both courts concluded Bannon had little chance of success in arguing that he was relying on legal advice and did not “willfully” break the law by ignoring the congressional subpoena. David I. Schoen, Bannon’s attorney, expressed disappointment, stating, “I fully believe the conviction will be reversed and it is a shame to see it mishandled like this. He never should be going to jail for even a day.”
Bannon’s legal team argued that as “a top adviser to the President Trump campaign,” he should have the “ability to participate in the campaign and comment on important matters of policy” as the 2024 election approaches. Solicitor General Elizabeth B. Prelogar countered that Bannon did not qualify for an “extraordinary” exception from the law, arguing to the Supreme Court, “He cannot make the demanding showing necessary to override the normal requirement that a convicted defendant begin serving his sentence.”
The court’s rejection of Bannon’s request followed a similar denial for Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro, who is scheduled to complete a four-month prison sentence on July 17 after being convicted of the same charges as Bannon. Navarro had written in a memoir about a plan he and Bannon devised to prevent Joe Biden from taking office.
Both Bannon and Navarro claimed they could not testify to the House committee due to executive privilege, a constitutional principle that shields presidential aides’ communications from Congress. However, judges ruled that unlike two other top Trump aides—Mark Meadows and Dan Scavino—who were not charged, neither Bannon nor Navarro received letters from Trump’s lawyer directing them not to respond to the committee’s subpoenas. In fact, an attorney for Trump at the time informed Bannon’s lawyers that there was no immunity from testimony for Bannon.
Bannon has maintained a high political profile, advising Trump and others in the 2024 campaign and speaking on his “War Room” podcast. He faces additional legal challenges, including a New York state judge’s order to pay nearly $500,000 in legal fees related to a criminal case alleging he defrauded donors contributing to a private effort to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border. Trump had pardoned Bannon in connection with those allegations.
Steve Bannon, the former chief strategist to Donald Trump, was found guilty of contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with a subpoena by the January 6th Committee. He faces a minimum jail sentence of 30 days and could be fined up to $100,000. Sentencing is scheduled for October 21. Bannon had initially refused to cooperate with the committee, only offering to testify after missing key deadlines.
Bannon, a former Hollywood film producer who transitioned to politics through documentaries and Breitbart.com, plans to appeal. “I only have one disappointment, and that is the gutless members of that show trial committee, the [January 6th] Committee, didn’t have the guts to testify in open court,” Bannon told reporters outside the federal courthouse in Washington.
The committee played an audio recording from October 31, 2020, in which Bannon discussed Trump’s plans to “just declare victory.” The committee has been trying to demonstrate that the Capitol attack was premeditated. Bannon had challenged the subpoenas, claiming Trump had asserted executive privilege. However, the committee and prosecutors noted that Bannon left the White House in 2017 and has been a private citizen since then.
In its resolution recommending the contempt charge, the January 6th Committee stated that Bannon “appears to have had multiple roles relevant to this investigation, including his role in constructing and participating in the ‘stop the steal’ public relations effort that motivated the attack, his efforts to plan political and other activity in advance of January 6th, and his participation in the events of that day from a ‘war room’ organized at the Willard InterContinental Washington D.C. Hotel.” The committee revealed that Bannon spoke to Trump twice on January 5.
Outside the court, Bannon, wearing his trademark multiple button-down shirts, said, “we’ll respect the decision” of the jury. “We may have lost a battle here today but we are not going to lose this war,” he added. His attorney, David Schoen, argued that the prosecution’s closing argument “completely tears asunder the constitutional principle of separation of powers.” He contended that “when a former president or a current president invokes executive privilege, it’s presumptively valid, period. It’s not for Congress to decide that it is not valid.”
Bannon’s trial lasted only a few days, and his team did not call any witnesses. The jury began deliberations late on Friday morning and reached a verdict around 2 PM ET. “The subpoena to Stephen Bannon was not an invitation that could be rejected or ignored,” said Matthew Graves, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. “Mr. Bannon had an obligation to appear before the House Select Committee to give testimony and provide documents. His refusal to do so was deliberate and now a jury has found that he must pay the consequences.”
The January 6th Committee released a statement saying, “The conviction of Steve Bannon is a victory for the rule of law and an important affirmation of the Select Committee’s work. As the prosecutor stated, Steve Bannon ‘chose allegiance to Donald Trump over compliance with the law.’ Just as there must be accountability for all those responsible for the events of January 6th, anyone who obstructs our investigation into these matters should face consequences. No one is above the law.”
Steve Bannon, a longtime ally of former President Donald Trump, was convicted on Friday of contempt charges for defying a congressional subpoena from the House committee investigating the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Bannon, 68, was convicted after a four-day trial in federal court on two counts: one for refusing to appear for a deposition and the other for refusing to provide documents in response to the committee’s subpoena. The jury of eight men and four women deliberated for just under three hours.
He faces up to two years in federal prison when he’s sentenced on October 21. Each count carries a minimum sentence of 30 days in jail. David Schoen, one of Bannon’s lawyers, said outside the courthouse that the verdict would not stand. “This is round one,” Schoen said. “You will see this case reversed on appeal.” Bannon himself said, “We may have lost the battle here today; we’re not going to lose this war.” He thanked the jurors for their service and expressed disappointment that the January 6 committee members did not testify.
Prosecutors were firm in their stance. “The subpoena to Stephen Bannon was not an invitation that could be rejected or ignored,” Matthew Graves, the U.S. attorney in Washington, said in a statement. “Mr. Bannon had an obligation to appear before the House Select Committee to give testimony and provide documents. His refusal to do so was deliberate, and now a jury has found that he must pay the consequences.”
The committee sought Bannon’s testimony over his involvement in Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. Bannon had initially argued that his testimony was protected by Trump’s claim of executive privilege. However, the House panel and the Justice Department contended that such a claim was dubious because Trump had fired Bannon from the White House in 2017, making Bannon a private citizen when he was consulting with Trump in the run-up to the January 6 riot.
Bannon’s lawyers argued during the trial that he did not refuse to cooperate and that the dates “were in flux.” They pointed out that Bannon had reversed course shortly before the trial began—after Trump waived his objection—and had offered to testify before the committee. In closing arguments, both sides reiterated their primary positions. The prosecution maintained that Bannon willfully ignored clear and explicit deadlines, while the defense claimed Bannon believed those deadlines were flexible and subject to negotiation.
Bannon was served with a subpoena on September 23 last year, ordering him to provide requested documents to the committee by October 7 and appear in person by October 14. Bannon was indicted in November on two counts of criminal contempt of Congress, a month after the Justice Department received the House panel’s referral. Bannon’s attorney Evan Corcoran argued that the deadlines were mere “placeholders” while lawyers on each side negotiated terms. Corcoran said the committee “rushed to judgment” because it “wanted to make an example of Steve Bannon.”
Prosecutors focused on the series of letters exchanged between the January 6 committee and Bannon’s lawyers. The correspondence showed Thompson immediately dismissing Bannon’s claim of executive privilege and explicitly threatening Bannon with criminal prosecution. “The defense wants to make this hard, difficult and confusing,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Vaughn in her closing statement. “This is not difficult. This is not hard. There were only two witnesses because it’s as simple as it seems.”
The defense motioned for an acquittal, arguing the prosecution had not proved its case. Bannon’s team rested its case without calling any witnesses, stating that Bannon saw no point in testifying since the judge’s previous rulings had limited his defense options. Among other things, Bannon’s team was barred from calling House Speaker Nancy Pelosi or members of the House panel as witnesses.
Source: The Washington Post, Associated Press
