[ad_1]
Steve Bannon was a longtime political strategist and mouthpiece for Donald Trump.
Washington:
Former Donald Trump aide Steve Bannon Friday says a judge could rule him out for refusing to testify in a congressional inquiry into the Jan. 6, 2021 attacks on the Capitol. face imprisonment.
Bannon, a longtime political strategist and vocal supporter of the former Republican president, was found guilty in July of contempt of Congress for ignoring a subpoena to testify.
The Justice Department on Monday called for the 68-year-old man to be sentenced to six months in prison, citing Bannon’s repeated calls. to delay the proceedings, implying that he might cooperate.
The ministry said Bannon “pursued a vicious strategy of defiance and contempt.”
Mr. Bannon, who now runs a streaming political commentary website, has asked the court to grant him a suspended sentence for dismissing a congressional subpoena on the advice of his lawyers.
He also asked that the court stay enforcement of the judgment while his appeal against the original verdict is ongoing.
“Mr. Bannon politely argues that a sentence of imprisonment would violate his constitutional rights,” his filing said.
Bannon is planning by hardline Trump supporters to attack the Capitol on Jan. 6 to prevent Democrat Joe Biden from being confirmed as the next president, according to an investigation by a House Select Committee. knew in advance.
It also revealed that he is appealing to Congress to block the inauguration of Biden, who defeated Trump in the November 2020 election.
“The mob that assaulted the Capitol on January 6 not only attacked the building, but the rule of law on which this country was built and under which it exists,” the Justice Department said in its ruling memo. Stated.
“By ignoring the Special Committee’s subpoena and its powers, the defendant compounded the attack.”
Bannon was one of the masterminds behind Trump’s first presidential campaign and victory in 2016.
He worked at the White House for the first seven months of Trump’s term as chief strategist before reportedly leaving due to conflicts with other top staff members.
In 2020, Bannon joined others in wire fraud and money laundering charges for stealing millions of dollars donated by donors to a plan to build a wall on the border with Mexico for personal use. Indicted in the ring.
Before stepping down as president in January 2021, President Trump issued a blanket pardon for Bannon, leading to the dismissal of the indictment against him.
(Except for the headline, this article is unedited by NDTV staff and published from a syndicated feed.)
[ad_2]
Source link
