Washington:
Former aide to Donald Trump, Steve Bannon, faces possible jail time Friday when a judge will determine his sentence for refusing to testify in the Congressional investigation into the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol.
Bannon, a longtime political strategist and advocate for the former Republican president, was found guilty in July of two charges of contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena to testify.
The Justice Department on Monday urged the court to sentence the 68-year-old to six months in prison — the highest point of the sentencing guidelines, but less than the maximum possible 12 months — and fine him $200,000. noting that Bannon had repeatedly asked for proceedings to be delayed by hinting that he might cooperate.
Bannon “has followed a strategy of bad faith of defiance and contempt,” the department said.
Bannon, who currently operates a political commentary streaming website, asked the court to sentence him to probation, saying he dismissed the congressional subpoena on the advice of his lawyers.
He also requested that the court delay execution of a verdict while his appeal against the original verdict continues.
“Mr. Bannon respectfully asserts that a prison sentence would violate his constitutional rights,” his submission said.
The House special committee investigation reveals that Bannon was aware of hardline Trump supporters’ plan to attack the Capitol on Jan. 6 to prevent Democrat Joe Biden from being confirmed as the next president.
It also showed he was advocating for Congress to prevent Biden — who defeated Trump in the November 2020 election — from becoming president.
“The rioters who overran the Capitol on Jan. 6 not only attacked a building, they attacked the rule of law on which this country is built and which makes it endure,” the Justice Department said in its sentencing memo to the court.
“By ignoring the subpoena and its authority, the defendant aggravated that attack.”
Bannon was one of the masterminds behind Trump’s original presidential campaign and victory in 2016.
He served in the White House for the first seven months of Trump’s tenure as chief strategist and reportedly left because of conflicts with other top officials.
In 2020, Bannon, along with others, was charged with wire transfer fraud and money laundering for taking millions of dollars for personal use that donors contributed to their plan to build a wall on the border with Mexico.
While others were found guilty of the scheme, before leaving office in January 2021, Trump gave Bannon a general pardon, leading to the dismissal of the charges against him.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.)