Former Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannon charged with obstruction of Congress

Steve Bannon, a former close adviser to Donald Trump, was convicted on Friday, July 22, of obstructing congressional investigative powers by a federal court after he refused to cooperate with the commission on the attack on the Capitol.

The 68-year-old, a figurehead of far-right populism in the US and director of Donald Trump’s successful 2016 campaign, will serve his sentence in October. A jury in federal court in Washington deliberated for less than three hours on Friday and found him guilty of two counts. He faces between one month and one year in prison for each of these charges.

Even after being ousted from the White House in August 2017, Steve Bannon remained close to Donald Trump and spoke with him on January 6, 2021, the day before the attack on the congressional headquarters. To ascertain the nature of their discussions, the parliamentary inquiry tasked with shedding light on the former president’s role in the coup has summoned Mr. He refused, claiming the presidents right to keep certain conversations secret, which made him liable“ban” Congress work.

Quiet security

At the start of the trial Tuesday, attorney Amanda Vaughan accused Steve Bannon of believing her. “Above the Law”. Mr. Pennon has “Even after Congress rejected his pretenses, he ignored orders to comply and brushed aside numerous warnings that he would face prosecution if he failed to comply with the subpoena, as he was required to do.”Amanda Vaughn added.

According to him, he, like others close to the president, had reasonable grounds to believe that since members of parliament had certified the presidential victory of Democrat Joe Biden, he, like others close to the president, had information about communications between Donald Trump and his supporters who stormed the Capitol.

The defense presented no witnesses at the trial, which began Monday with jury selection, and Steve Bannon did not speak in his own defense. His lawyer, Evan Corcoran, however, condemned the political prosecutions and promised “nobody is here[vait] dismissed the petition” The date of his deposition was also negotiated with the commission.

“Victory to the Rule of Law”

As his trial approaches, Steve Bannon has agreed to cooperate with members of parliament. The lawyers had condemned “A last-minute reversal to avoid” A sentencing and the judge in charge of the case, Carl Nicholls, wanted the trial to continue.

David Schoen, one of Steve Bannon’s lawyers, said outside court that the ruling would not stand. ” This is the first round ” he said. ” You will see this case overturned on appeal. As the defendant left the court he said: We may have lost a battle today, but we will not lose this battle. Called on Fox News later in the evening, he added: “I will fight till the end”. “We have a long appeals process (…) I think the law is with us in many respects. He insisted.

The former political consultant called on the audience to defeat Democrats in November’s midterm legislative elections, as he proposed that the Republican-dominated Congress open its own investigation into the attack on the Capitol. “We need a real January 6 commission”he said before star host Tucker Carlson.

The chair of the House inquiry into capital storming, Democrat Benny Thompson, and Republican Vice Speaker Liz Cheney both praised the court’s decision. “Victory to the Rule of Law”. “Just as everyone responsible for the events of January 6 must be held accountable, anyone who obstructs our investigation of the facts must face consequences.”They said in a statement.