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House votes to hold Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress

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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:


  • The House of Representatives voted Thursday to hold Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with subpoenas issued to him by the January 6 committee.
  • The resolution will now go to the Department of Justice for possible criminal prosecution.
  • The final vote was 229-202, with nine Republicans joining the Democrats for the contempt resolution.

The House of Representatives voted Thursday to hold Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress. The former White House chief strategist defied a subpoena issued to him by the January 6 committee.

The House voted 229-209, with nine Republicans voting with all Democrats in favor of the resolution. It will now go to the Department of Justice for possible criminal prosecution.

Former President Donald Trump filed a federal lawsuit on Monday to keep investigators from obtaining White House records related to the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection

Trump said that many of those records are protected by executive privilege. Bannon’s lawyer, Robert Costello, cited Trump’s executive privilege claim as the basis for his client’s noncompliance with the subpoena.

President Joe Bide, however, turned down Trump’s request to withhold the documents, and the Jan.6 panel has rejected Bannon’s argument as an “excuse.”

The committee’s leaders noted Bannon is an important key witness. The panelists pointed repeatedly to his remarks on Jan. 5 when he said, “all hell is going to break loose tomorrow.”

That statement and others make clear that Bannon “knew what was going to happen before it did,” select committee vice chair Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., said in a floor speech. “And thus, he must have been aware of, and may have been involved in, the planning of everything that played out on that day.”

“The American people deserve to know what he knew and what he did,” Cheney added.

The select committee, comprising seven Democrats and two Republicans, has issued subpoenas to other Trump allies including former chief of staff Mark Meadows.

Bannon is the only person who completely defied the subpoena. He is ordered to produce documents to the committee and sits for a deposition scheduled for last Thursday. Bannon refused.

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In a letter to the committee, Costello cited a message from Trump’s counsel Justin Clark, instructing Bannon not to produce any documents or testimony “concerning privileged material.”

The nine Republicans who voted for the Bannon contempt resolution are:

Liz Cheney, Wyo.
Adam Kinzinger, Ill.
Peter Meijer, Mich.
Fred Upton, Mich.
John Katko, N.Y.
Nancy Mace, S.C.
Brian Fitzpatrick, Pa.
Anthony Gonzalez, Ohio
Jamie Herrera Beutler, Wash.

Source: CNBC

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2 Comments

2 Comments

  1. George Hill

    October 24, 2021 at 7:12 pm

    Congrats Steve, I find them contemptible also, nothing but pure garbage.

  2. GomeznSA

    October 25, 2021 at 7:57 pm

    I’m gonna venture a guess that he will NOT skate like (with)holder has for years now…………………………..

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