CNN
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Steve Bannon – defies congressional subpoena, set to go on trial Charges of criminal contempt – Jan. 6, 2021 told the House Select Committee investigating the rebellion that he is now willing to testify at a public hearing, according to a letter obtained by CNN.
Bannon’s reversal comes after he received a letter from the premier President Donald Trump giving up Administrative privilegeAlthough both the House Select Committee and federal prosecutors initially argued that Bannon did not seek carte blanche to ignore a congressional subpoena.
“When you first received a subpoena to testify and produce documents, I was granted executive privilege. However, I have seen how unfairly you and others have been treated, have had to spend a lot of money on legal fees, and all the trauma you are going through for your love of country and respect for office. President,” Trump wrote to Bannon on Saturday, obtained by CNN.
“So, if you can reach an agreement on a time and place for your testimony, I will waive your executive privilege, which allows you to go in and testify truthfully and fairly,” Trump added. Thugs and Hacks.”
Bannon was indicted last year on two counts of criminal contempt of Congress. He argued that he was free to ignore his congressional subpoena to protect Trump’s potential privilege demands. But federal prosecutors and other legal experts argued the privilege did not apply to Bannon — who left his White House chief strategist years before the Capitol riots — and did not give him the power to refuse to provide any documents or testimony to the panel. .
Bannon’s team provided Trump’s new letter to the committee overnight Jan. 6, along with a letter from Bannon attorney Bob Costello.
“Although Mr. Bannon remains steadfast in his beliefs, circumstances have now changed,” Costello wrote. “Mr. Bannon is willing, indeed willing, to testify at your public hearing.
The Jan. 6 team was eager to talk to Bannon about interactions with Trump in December 2020, and Bannon insisted that he focus on the Jan. 6 certification of the presidential election results. Panelists were intrigued by Bannon’s comments ahead of the Capitol uprising, including a Jan. 5 podcast in which he predicted, “All hell will break loose tomorrow.”
Bannon, who pleaded guilty to the contempt charge, is due to appear in court on July 18. Testifying would not necessarily exonerate him from the criminal contempt charges he faces, so it’s unclear how his upcoming trial would be affected if Bannon attacked someone. Contact the group to testify. He is scheduled to appear in court on Monday for his arraignment.
A spokesperson for the group did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
