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Steve Bannon, a former top adviser to Donald Trump, was sentenced Friday morning to four months in prison for criminal contempt of Congress after defying a Jan. 6 subpoena from the commission.
The judge will wait to impose the sentence if Bannon files an appeal before Nov. 15, which his team has indicated is ready.
Judge Carl Nichols agreed with the Department of Justice (DOJ) that Bannon had shown “no remorse” for his actions and “attacked the select committee at every turn.”
He said Bannon “has not yet shown that he intends to comply with the subpoena.”
He rejected Bannon’s argument of executive privilege, noting that Bannon was a private individual leading up to the uprising. “Some of the information requested by the subpoena is information against which no conceivable claim of executive privilege could be made,” Nichols said.
Bannon speaks to media as he arrives in federal court to be sentenced on October 21, 2022 in Washington, DC
Bannon carried a copy of Friday’s Financial Times into court
However, the judge noted that Bannon appeared to be simply taking legal advice, noting that he had some involvement with the commission. “Bannon didn’t completely ignore the subpoena or respond to the commission at all.”
He said the fact that the commission did not go to court to try to enforce the subpoena, but went straight to the criminal court, “is in Bannon’s favour.”
However, the judge stressed the importance of honoring Congress’s authority, saying that “others should be deterred from committing a similar crime.”
As he walked into the courthouse Friday morning, Bannon told a group of reporters, “Remember, this is an illegal regime. Their judgment day is November 8, when the Biden administration ends.”
“By the way, and remember: take out the CCP,” Bannon added, comparing the Biden administration to the Chinese Communist Party.
The Trump strategist did not speak during his sentencing.
Bannon, 68, is Trump’s first ally to be sent to jail for his ties to the Jan. 6 Capitol riots. He was the first person to be found guilty of contempt of Congress since Attorney General Richard Kleindienst and Watergate burglar G. Gordon Liddy were convicted in 1974.
The charge is only a felony, but the DOJ had recommended a six-month jail term and a $200,000 fine, with prosecutors alleging he showed “bad faith” in approaching the subpoena. Bannon’s lawyer had requested probation.
Each of the two counts of contempt of Congress he faces carries a minimum sentence of 30 days in prison and a fine between $100 and $100,000.
“In my view, the law sets a mandatory minimum of one month and a mandatory maximum of 12 months,” the judge said.
Trump Rat Appears Outside DC Courthouse As Bannon Sentencing Begins
Bannon attorney David Schoen argued there is no one-month minimum on contempt charges, but Nichols claimed the minimum.
He argued that Bannon only followed the constitution when he claimed administrative law prevented him from testifying. The defense was relentless.
“Frankly, Mr. Bannon shouldn’t be apologizing. No American should apologize for Mr. Bannon’s handling of this matter,” said Schoen. “There’s nothing here to scare you. There’s nothing here to punish.’
The defense claimed that the prosecution showed their zeal to make Mr. Bannon their trophy.
Schoen even ripped up Trump attorney Justin Clark, who was being interviewed for the prosecution.
“He’s nothing but a criminal. I wouldn’t believe anything he says, any of what you might call the Three Stooges… He lied to me personally. He personally ripped me off.’
A jury convicted Bannon after just three hours of deliberation for refusing to testify or provide documents to the committee on Jan. 6 in July.
A day before Bannon was found guilty, the commission played a clip of the strategist saying Trump planned to declare victory in 2020, whatever the results.
According to the committee, Bannon spoke to Trump at least twice on Jan. 5, attended a planning meeting at the Willard Hotel in Washington, DC, and said in his podcast, “Tomorrow will break loose.”
Another Trump adviser, Peter Navarro, has been charged with contempt of Congress after defying a subpoena and will stand trial in November. Former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and former social media director Dan Scavino were referred by the House for contempt of Congress, but the DOJ declined to prosecute.