A federal grand jury has indicted former Trump adviser Steve Bannon for contempt of Congress, the Justice Department announced Friday.
The House of Representatives voted to hold Bannon in contempt in October after the former White House adviser defied a subpoena from the panel investigating the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
“Since my first day in office, I have promised Justice Department employees that together we would show the American people by word and deed that the Department adheres to the rule of law, follows the facts and the law, and pursues equal justice under the law,” Attorney General Merrick Garland wrote in a statement Friday. “Today’s charges reflect the Department’s steadfast commitment to these principles.”
Bannon is charged with two counts of contempt of Congress: One for his refusal to appear for a deposition, and another for failing to produce documents for lawmakers despite a subpoena.
Each count carries a minimum of 30 days and a maximum of one year in jail, in addition to fines ranging from $100 to $1,000.
The subpoena issued by Congress claimed lawmakers have reason to believe Bannon has “information relevant to understanding events related to Jan. 6.”
“Steve Bannon’s indictment should send a clear message to anyone who thinks they can ignore the Select Committee or try to stonewall our investigation: No one is above the law,” Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson and Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, the Jan. 6 Committee’s leadership, wrote in a statement Friday evening. “We will not hesitate to use the tools at our disposal to get the information we need.”
A second witness, former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, defied a similar subpoena from the committee on Friday by not showing up for a scheduled deposition. Rep. Thompson, the chair of the panel, said he will be recommending contempt charges against Meadows next week.
“Mr. Meadows’s actions today — choosing to defy the law — will force the Select Committee to consider pursuing contempt or other proceedings to enforce the subpoena,” Reps. Thompson and Cheney, the panel’s vice chair, wrote in an earlier statement about Meadows.
“And while we’re determined to get all the information we’re seeking, Mr. Meadows, Mr. Bannon, and others who go down this path won’t prevail in stopping the Select Committee’s effort getting answers for the American people about January 6th, making legislative recommendations to help protect our democracy, and helping ensure nothing like that day ever happens again,” the statement continued.
Meadows had been in discussions with the committee since his subpoena was issued in September, but his lawyer said Friday that Meadows has a “sharp legal dispute” with the panel as Trump has claimed executive privilege over the testimony. His refusal to comply comes amid escalating legal battles between the committee and Trump as the former president has claimed privilege over documents and interviews the lawmakers are demanding.
The White House said in a letter Thursday that President Joe Biden would waive any privilege that would prevent Meadows from cooperating with the committee, prompting his lawyer to say Meadows wouldn’t comply.
As the sitting president, Biden has so far waived most of Trump’s assertions of privilege over documents. U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan has backed Biden’s position, noting in one ruling this week that “Presidents are not kings, and Plaintiff is not President.”
The panel’s proceedings and attempts to gather information have been delayed as Trump appealed Chutkan’s rulings. On Thursday, a federal appeals court temporarily blocked the release of some of the White House records the panel is seeking, giving that court time to consider Trump’s arguments.
Still, the House panel is continuing its work, and lawmakers have already interviewed more than 150 witnesses so far as they attempt to build the most comprehensive record yet of how a violent mob of Trump’s supporters broke into the Capitol and temporarily halted the certification of Biden’s victory.
The committee has subpoenaed almost three dozen people, including former White House staffers, Trump allies who strategized about how to overturn his defeat and people who organized the giant rally on the National Mall the morning of Jan. 6. While some, like Meadows and Bannon, have balked, others have spoken to the panel and provided documents.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
